SUNYA NOTES (JUNE)

 COVERAGE
 The Hindu( Page 2 till Page 29)
 Vision monthly(Page 30 till Page 37)
 PIB(Page 38 – Page 39)
 Insights(Page 39 – Page 42)

 ‘The Hindu’Coverage is unique feature of our notes which is generally

ignored by Coaching Institutes and is targeted most by UPSC. We search
and add every important ‘term’ mentioned in the newspaper so as to save
your time

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 Some reviews/Feedbacks

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 Rice blast = caused by a fungus Magnaportheoryzae + one of the major diseases of
the rice crop + researchers from ICAR-National Rice Research Institute (NRRI),
Odisha have mapped out the diverse genes in rice that help in disease resistance +
from 1980-1987 seven blast endemics have occurred in India + Fungicides
 Monkeypox = monkeypox virus is similar to human smallpox and belongs to the
virus family Poxviridae + It is transmitted primarily through infected animals (rodents
and primates) + Human-to-human transmission of monkeypox is possible but limited
+ The virus is transmitted to those in close contact through secretions of the
respiratory tract and skin lesions. While the disease is largely self-limiting, in some
cases it does cause complications leading to death. During monkeypox outbreaks,
fatality varies from 1-10%, with most deaths seen in younger people + WHO notes
that prior smallpox vaccination is highly effective in preventing monkeypox +
Monkeypox occurs sporadically in Central and West Africa; cases have been reported
from 10 African countries + It was first identified in humans in 1970 in the
Democratic Republic of Congo, where the disease has now become endemic.
 Chagos Islands = home to US military base of diego Garcia under lease from the UK
since 1960s + ICJ recently ruled that UK must hand over Chagos islands to Mauritius
and complete the process of decolonization + India too support Mauritius in this case
 Ottamthullal = is a dance and poetic performance form of Kerala + It was introduced
in the 18th century by Kunchan Nambiar, one of the Prachina Kavithrayam (three
famous Malayalam language poets) + It is accompanied by a mridangam (a barrel
shaped double headed drum) or an idakka (drum and cymbal)
 Project Sashakt = It aims to strengthen the credit capacity, credit culture and credit
portfolio of public sector banks + It is a five-pronged strategy towards resolution of
stressed assets, as recommended by Sunil Mehta Committee.
 Golden langur breeding project = Assam + The golden langur conservation project
was undertaken at the Assam State Zoo in Guwahati during the 2011-12 fiscal +
Funded by the Central Zoo Authority, an isolated and undisturbed site within the zoo
was chosen to provide a natural habitat for the primates with a golden coat endemic to
Assam + IUCN Status is  Endangered + Apart from a 60 square mile area in north-
western Assam, small populations are found in Bhutan and Tripura 
 The rule of Nishan Izzuddeen = to PM Modi + the Maldives highest honour
 Red notice = NOT an international arrest warrant + issued by Interpol general
secretariat + it is a request to locate and provisionally arrest an individual
pending extradition +gives high international visibility to cases + Criminals and
suspects are flagged to border officials making travel difficult + countries can request
and share critical info linked to an investigation + Issued if police of one country
request through their national central bureau and provide info on case + Interpol
cannot compel any member country to arrest an individual subject to red notice +
legal value given to a red notice is decided by the member country
 Sadikpur Sinauli = ancient site with chariots, swords and other objects pointing to
the presence of a warrior class around 4,000 years ago + Uttar Pradesh + could be
declared a site of national importance soon + located on the lest banks of Yamuna
 Senna Spectabilis = Invasive plants + which caused major threat to the wildlife
habitat in the Nilgiri Biosphere reserve
 Oussudu lake = Puducherry

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 National maritime heritage museum = at Lothal in Gujrat + India and Portugal will
cooperate in the setting up + project is being implemented by the Ministry of
Shipping through its Sagarmala programme, with the involvement of the
Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), the State government and other stakeholders.
 Koundinya sanctuary = Andhra Pradesh
 FATF/Gropued’action financiese = Intergovernmental organisation + 1989(Initiative of
G7 to combat money laundering) + In 2001, mandate expanded to terrorist financing +
secretariat at OECD in paris + monitor implementation through peer reviews + India is
amember(39th country) + 49 recommendations(40 for money laundering and 9 for terror
financing) + Informal and Non- permanent body
 ‘Greylist’ = FATF(Financial action task force) + Pakistan(2nd time placed in this
list)
 G7 = Canada + USA + UK + France + Germany+ Itlay + Japan
 Asiatic golden Cat = Scientists have found that its coat comes in five other shades
and types: cinnamon, gray, melanistic, ocelot and tightly rosetted + Golden is no
longer the only colour the elusive Asiatic golden cat can be associated with. Its coat
comes in five other shades in Arunachal Pradesh, scientists have discovered + Near
Threatened + It is found across eastern Nepal through north-eastern India to Indonesia
 Idu Mishmi tribe = Arunachal Pradesh + (protesting against the declaration
of Dibang Wildlife Sanctuary (DWS) as Tiger Reserve) + (traditionally follow an
animist and shamanistic faith and believe that tigers are their elder siblings. Tigers
are never hunted by Idu Mishmi and even If a tiger is killed in self-defense, it will
receive the same burial as a human being)
 Kudremukh national park = Karnataka
 Balsams or jewel-weeds = these plants are highly sensitive to climatic conditions
such as extreme drought and extended exposure to sunlight + There are about 230
species of Balsams found in India and majority of them are found in the eastern
Himalayas and Western Ghats + Consisting of both annual and perennial herbs,
balsams are succulent plants with high endemism. Because of their bright beautiful
flowers, these group of plants are of prized horticultural significance + between 2010
and 2019, 23 new species discovered from eastern Himalayas
 ‘Section 301 probe’ = by US Trade Representative (USTR) + any action that would
be taken under Section 301 of US Trade Act of 1974 will be an “omnibus”
investigation looking into a slew of steps like taxes and “discriminatory treatment” of
US companies.
 Positive co-activator4(PC4) = new protein responsible for enhanced autophagy +
founded by JNCASR research team + first time any study has shown that genome
organisation is directly responsible for autophagy regulation in cells.
 Mrigal carp/white carp fish = Vulnerable + is a species of ray-finned fish in the carp
family + Native to streams and rivers in India, the only surviving wild population is in
the Cauvery River + It is widely aquafarmed and introduced populations exist outside
its native range + It reaches a maximum length of 1 m (3.3 ft)
 UN security council 1267 Resolution = adopted unanimously in 1999 + on
the situation in Afghanistan, the Council designated Osama bin Laden and associates
as terrorists and established a sanctions regime to cover individuals and entities
associated with Al-Qaida, Osama bin Laden and/or the Taliban wherever
located + It is a consolidated list of people and entities it has determined as being

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 associated with Al Qaeda or the Taliban, and laws which must be passed within each
member nation to implement the sanctions + Masood Azhar has been linked to Osama
bin Laden and, hence, can be sanctioned under 1267 sanctions committee + India is
not a member of UNSC and, therefore, technically not privy to UNSC deliberations
+ Indonesia is the current chair of 1267 Sanctions Committee and
will continue till the end of 2019. Indonesia is supportive of the move to ban Azhar +
(Triangular formula = on designation Azhar as global terrorist in the UN
security council’s 1267 committee)
 UNSC(United Nations Security Council) = one of the six principal organs of
the United Nations and is charged with the maintenance of international peace and
security + Its powers include the establishment of peacekeeping operations,
the establishment of international sanctions, and the authorization of military action
through Security Council resolutions + it is the only UN body with the authority
to issue binding resolutions to member states + The Security Council consists of
fifteen members. Russia, the United Kingdom, France, China, and the United States—
serve as the body’s five permanent members(Veto power) + Security Council also has
10 non-permanent members, elected on a regional basis to serve two-year terms.
The body’s presidency rotates monthly among its members(IS INDIA MEMBER
NOW????)
 Mangdechhu power project = India’s Bhutan hydel power project + 750 MW +
Mangdechhu project is bagged by the Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd. (BHEL) and it
will be implemented on a bilateral basis + (Sunkosh reservoir project = Bhutan)
 Seven Summits challenge = daunting mountaineering feat that involves scaling the
highest mountains of each of the seven continents + Mt. Elbrus (Russia/Georgia), Mt.
Kilimanjaro (Tanzania, Africa), Mt. Aconcagua (Argentina, South America), Mt.
Kosciuszko(Australia), Mt. Denali(North America) and Vinson Massif(Antarctica)
 National Rural drinking water programme (NRDWP) = 2009 + Centrally
Sponsored Scheme + Ministry of Drinking Water and Sanitation + Aim of NRDWP is
to provide every rural person with adequate safe water for drinking, cooking and other
basic domestic needs on sustainable basis + Centrally Sponsored Scheme + It will
enable the country to reach the goal of increasing coverage of sustainable Piped Water
Supply
 'Saavira Bhavigala Saradara' (master of thousand wells) = Karnataka region
 S-400 triumf = long range air defence system consists of a surface to air missile that
can attack UAVs ,drones,cruise missiles + Russia + Range = 400km + Max. altitude =
10000 ft + Max speed = 4800 m/s + has command control system, multiple radar
units, automated from aquisition to final engagement + 4th generation system in terms
of its combat capabilities + identified by NATO as the SA-21 Growler + world’s most
dangerous such system
 Countering America’s Adversaries through Sanctions Act (CAATSA) = by USA
+ it aims to counter the aggression by Iran, Russia and North Korea through punitive
measures
 Chabahar port = Iran + the advantage of chabahar port for India is that it has
received a waiver from USA(waiver is not time bound)
 Draft National Education Policy, 2019 = Doubling the percentage of public
expenditure on education + setting up an overarching National Education
Commission as well as a National Research Foundation + encouraging primary school
education in the mother tongue and incorporating traditional Indian knowledge

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 systems into the curriculum + This is the first NEP in almost three decades; the last
time such a policy was formulated was in 1986, with amendments made in 1992
 Three-language formula = recommended by the draft national education policy +
pre-school teaching in mother tongue + class 1 to 5 exposure to three languages
medium is mother tongue + class 6 onwards choice within the 3-language formula +
in Hindi-speaking states Hindi ,English and another modern Indian language + in non-
Hindi speaking states English, local language and one any other language + Foreign
language can be an elective subject
 Article 351 of Indian Constitution = Directive for development of the Hindi language
 Kasturirangan committee = new education policy + set up
after draft submitted by T.S.R subramanian committee
 The right to education was made a fundamental right by inserting Article 21A by the
Constitution (Eighty-sixth Amendment) Act, 2002 + It was enabled with the
subsequent enactment of the Right to Education (RTE) Act, 2009 + The RTE Act
bears many similarities to the U.S.’s No Child Left Behind Act.
 UN women = also known as United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the
Empowerment of Women + Hq at New York + SDG 5
 International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) = setup in 1957 + Headquarter  at
Vienna + Objective is to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy, and to inhibit its
use for any military purpose, including nuclear weapons + Though independent of
UN it reports to both the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council +
Nobel Peace Prize in  2005 + UN atomic watchdog
 Houthi group = Yemen
 Hezbollah group = Lebanon
 The Controller General of Accounts is the apex Accounting Authority of the Central
Government and exercises the powers of the President under Article 150 of the
constitution for prescribing the forms of Accounts of the Union and State
Governments on the advice of the Comptroller & Auditor General of India(CAG) +
Non-statutory
 Enforcement Directorate = Department of Revenue,Ministry of finance + law
enforcement agency and economic intelligence agency responsible for enforcing
economic laws and fighting economic crime in India
 Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) = mandate of SFIO is limited to
investigating frauds relating to a company under the Companies Act + SFIO falls
under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Corporate Affairs + The SFIO is involved in
major fraud probes. It coordinates with the Income Tax Department and the Central
Bureau of Investigation for fraud investigation
 ‘International Trade Corridor’ = Program aims to expand about 500 kilometers of
roads in lndia’s North Bengal and N-E Region that will enable efficient and safe
transport within lndia and regionally with other SASEC member countries + Loan
extended by ADB($150 million) + Program is an important initiative in Regional
Connectivity aimed at increasing domestic and regional trade through North Bengal-
N-E Region Intl Trade corridor by upgrading key roads. It will give a boost
to lndia’s efforts to promote regional connectivity in the South Asia
 Council on the future of trade and investment = World Economic Forum(WEF)

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 API – Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients = These are those constituents of drugs
that are responsible for effects produced by these drugs. The other constituents of the
drugs called excipients are chemically inactive substances, which help carry APIs to
the body system or target organ etc.
 Subic Bay = bay on the west coast of the island of Luzon in the Philippines[Locate on
Map]
 Electronic nicotine delivery systems (ENDS) = which use a nicotine-laced liquid
+ ENDS, including e-cigarettes, vape, e-sheesha, e-nicotine flavoured hookah and
heat-not-burn devices(BANNED BY HEALTH MINISTRY) + ENDS are also not
approved as nicotine replacement therapy under the Drugs and Cosmetics Act + E-
cigarette use adversely affects the cardiovascular system, impairs respiratory immune
cell function and airways in a way similar to cigarette smoking and is responsible for
severe respiratory disease. It also poses risk to foetus, infant, and child brain
development + harmful health effects e-cigarettes pose to users, as well as passive
exposure.
 Sri Krishna temple, Guruvayur = Kerala
 ‘General consent’ to CBI = general consent is the approval given by the state
government concerned from time to time to the CBI and other agencies covered under
DSPE Act,1946 + The consent is necessary as the jurisdiction of these agencies is
confined to Delhi and UTs under this act + AP and WB recently withdrawn their
consent(However, AP restored it back after the recent state elections) + Withdrawl of
consent don’t have any effect on pending enquires(That is, prospective effect only) +
Despite the withdrawl of consent, courts can still order a CBI Investigation + This is
not the first time that general consent has been withdrawn by the state + Withdrawal
of consent will only bar the CBI from registering a case within the jurisdiction of
Andhra and Bengal. Thus, for new cases the CBI could still file cases in Delhi and
continue to probe people inside the two states + cases registered anywhere else in the
country, but involving people stationed in Andhra Pradesh and West Bengal would
allow CBI’s jurisdiction to extend to these states
 Manjeera Reservoir and Dam = Telangana
 National Common Mobility Card = Metro rail commuters in Bengaluru and four
other cities will be the first to experience a single pan-India multi-purpose payment
card system + Bharat Electronics Ltd. (BEL) , which is part of the National Common
Mobility Card (NCMC) project, is fine-tuning the gate payment systems for metro
stations + common mobility card is meant to eventually indigenise and transform
payments for all modes of travel, shopping, parking, money withdrawal and other
uses in place of separate credit, debit and prepaid cards + The NCMC is part of the
Digital India mission and is spearheaded by the Ministry of Housing and Urban
Affairs + C-DAC is a technology partner + Currently, the country imports almost all
component systems for metro rail systems. The card apart, NCMC would also help
indigenise on a large scale, metro, toll and other payment gates, command and control
systems and many other systems + aim would be to ensure that new metros have only
the indigenous systems. BEL would engage small and medium industries to
manufacture the devices
 Article 371(A) = guarantees special status for the people of the north-eastern state
Nagaland + safeguards the customary rights of the Nagas + (“Land and its resources

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 in Nagaland belong to the people and not the government. Landowners usually wield
the provisions in Article 371(A) to prevent the government from carrying out
developmental activities on their land,”)
 Generalized System of Preferences (GSP) Status/GSP Status is a preferential tariff
system extended by developed countries (also known as preference giving countries
or donor countries) to developing countries (also known as preference
receiving countries or beneficiary countries). It involves reduced MFN Tariffs or
duty-free entry of eligible products exported by beneficiary countries to the markets
of donor countries.(Presently 28 countries has extended GSP status
to India.These are Japan, NZ, Canada, Russia, 17 EU countries etc)(PLEASE
REMEMBER ABOVE MENTIONED IMPORTANT COUNTRIES) + GSP measure
was adopted at UNCTAD Conference in 1968 and later enacted by General
Agreement on Trade and Tariff (now WTO) in 1971 [USA Recenty withdrawn this
status from India]
 Generalized System of Preferences(GSP Programme)[of USA] = which sets zero
tariffs for certain goods from a set of 121 developing countries to foster their
trade and economic development + accounts for some $5.6 billion of India’s exports
to the U.S., making India the largest GSP beneficiary + Chemicals, gems
and jewellery, engineering and textiles are among the Indian industrial sectors that
benefit from the GSP + USA Recently withdrawn the GSP status from India + 60-day
period is there after which the GSP decision come into effect after announcement +
US Trade representative(USTR) reviews GSP programme periodically
 Crispr-Cas9 = gene editing tool + an acronym for
Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic Repeats, harnesses the
natural defence mechanisms of bacteria to alter an organism’s genetic code + It’s
likened to a pair of molecular scissors, a cut-and-paste technology, that can snip the
two DNA strands at a specific location and modify gene function + The cutting is
done by enzymes like Cas9, guided by pre-designed RNA sequences, which ensure
that the targeted section of the genome is edited out.
 Chinese scientist who created the world’s first gene-edited babies experiment, in
which he sought to immunise a pair of twins from HIV by tinkering with a gene
called CCR5(However, while protecting against HIV, a deactivated CCR5 gene can
also make people more susceptible to West-Nile Fever)
 National Statistical Commission (NSC) = established in 2005 + on the
recommendation of C. Rangarajan Economic Advisory Council + The objective of its
constitution is to reduce the problems faced by statistical agencies(CSO and NSSO) in
the country in relation to collection of data + NSC has four Members besides a
Chairperson + MoSPI(Ministry of statistics and policy implementation)
 Periodic Labour force survey = launched in 2017 by the NSSO + regular survey
for generating estimates of various labour force indicators on quarterly basis for urban
areas and annual basis for both rural and urban areas, at State/UT and all-India level +
would supply data not only about the formal sector, but also about the informal sector
+ PLFS is designed to generate the indicators of labour market operations using two
approaches( Usual Status (US) approach and Current Weekly Status (CWS) approach)
+ In this survey, Computer Assisted Personal Interviewing (CAPI) Method has been

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 adopted with field operators using tablets to enter the data. This would generate more
accurate and timely information.
 Black box = available in aircrafts + black box, being introduced for the first time by
Indian Railways, has a powerful multi-dimensional communication interface to
provide information on passengers and coach condition on real-time basis
 Spyder = surface to air missile system + IAF’s Israeli-origin
 MCA-21 Database = e-governance initiative + launched in 2006 + allow firms to
electronically file their financial results and advance filing of corporate accounts, to
calculate national accounts + It also include addition to the volume index of Index
of Industrial Production (IIP) and establishment-based dataset of Annual Survey of
Industries (ASI) + maintained by the Ministry of Corporate Affairs + under the
revised GDP series that was introduced in 2015, financial data from companies that
filed their accounts with the government even just once in three years were considered
sufficient to help make GDP growth estimations (this changed in 2015 when the
government introduced a new GDP series with 2011-12 as the base year (from the
previous base year of 2004-05) and introduced the MCA-21 database as the mainstay
for calculating GDP figures)
 Identification friend or Foe (IFF) system = There are a range of methods used to
identify friendly aircraft. These include visual sightings, radio transmission,
designated entry and exit points for friendly aircraft and a transponder-based + With
supersonic aircraft and long range radars, the IFF system is the predominant method
used in both civil and military aviation to identify aircraft + IFF is a transponder-
based identification device that communicates with ground radars and exchanges
encrypted codes to indicate that the aircraft is a friendly one + Some modes of
transponders also indicate the speed and specific coordinates of the aircraft which are
used by civil air traffic controllers to identify commercial aircraft.
 Opto-electronic properties = combination of optics and electronics + key property of
these materials is photoluminescence, in which the material absorbs light and re-emits
it as a spectrum + Consisting of practically one layer of atoms, these materials are
two-dimensional in structure + Photoluminescence properties can be used in various
devices such as quantum LEDs which can be used in communication and
computation, Solar cells, laser diodes, optical fiber etc + material such as tungsten
diselenide and molybdenum diselenide are being studied keenly for their
optoelectronics properties
 Plasmonic effect = The plasmonic effect is the interaction between free electrons in
metal nano particles and incident light
 Dzhezkazgan (Zhezkazgan) = Karaganda Region ->Kazakhstan
 International Space Station (ISS) = space station, or a habitable artificial satellite, in
low Earth orbit + 1998(expected to work till 2030) + in low earth orbit(sometimes can
be seen by naked eye) + serves as a microgravity and space environment research
laboratory + It is a joint project among five participating space agencies: NASA
(USA), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), ESA (Europe), and CSA (Canada) +
China launched its first experimental space station, Tiangong 1, in September 2011
 What are the factors that may go to affect the body biology in space in contrast to
these on earth = zero gravity or micro gravity + exposure to ionising radiation or
IR(This arises from cosmic rays, solar flares and such, which will affect the

8
 circumnavigating astronaut. On Earth, the atmosphere and the magnetic field of Earth
protect us earthlings reasonably efficiently)
 New species of dung beetle = discovered in Tawang district of Arunachal Pradesh +
Enoplotrupestawangensis, is shining dark blue in colour + relatively bigger than most
of the dung beetles + Dung beetles belong to the super family scarabaeoidea, having
clubbed antennae and pro-tibiae (pro-legs) modified for burrowing dung inside the
soil + characteristic of this species is the strong sexual dimorphism, with the fronto-
clypeal horn shorter in females than males. Three more species of dung beetles from
the group Geotrupidae, which roughly means earth borers, were discovered by the
same scientists in the past three years. One of them, Odontotrypestawangensis, black
with metallic lustre, was also discovered in Tawang in 2016 +Bolbocerasdarjeelicans,
measuring about 10 mm, dark brown in colour, from Darjeeling in West Bengal; and
Bolbocerasbilaspuricans from Chhattisgarh[DON’T Take THESE TYPE OF NEWS
LIGHTLY]
 National Registrar of citizens(NRC) = It is a list of all bona fide Indian citizens of
Assam, the only state with such a document + It will include persons whose names
appear in any of the electoral rolls upto the midnight of 24th March, 1971 or National
Register of Citizens, 1951 and their descendants. + The Citizenship Act of 1955 was
amended after the Assam Accord for all Indian-origin people who came from
Bangladesh before January 1, 1966 to be deemed as citizens + Those who came
between January 1, 1966 and March 25, 1971 were eligible for citizenship after
registering and living in the State for 10 years + while those entering after March 25,
1971, were to be deported. However, nothing much happened over the decades + In
2014, the Supreme Court asked the state government to update the 1951 NRC in a
time-bound manner + Present exercise is being conducted under the supervision of the
Supreme Court + The NRC is being updated as per the provisions of The Citizenship
Act, 1955 and The Citizenship (Registration of Citizens and Issue of National
Identity Cards) Rules, 2003 + The process of verification involved house-to-house
field verification, determination of authenticity of documents, family tree
investigations in order to rule out bogus claims of parenthood, and linkages and
separate hearings for married women + Excluded people in the draft have scope for
filing claims and objections, for which forms of correction would be available at
various NRC seva kendras (IMPORTANT TOPIC)
 P-8I long-range maritime surveillance aircraft = P-8I aircraft is a variant of the P-
8A Poseidon aircraft that Boeing developed as a replacement for the US Navy’s
ageing P-3 fleet + recently used by India for anti-piracy sorties from Salalah in Oman
to patrol the Gulf of Aden + With this Indian Navy expands its mission-based
deployments (MBD) in the Indian Ocean region + This was the second time the P-8I
operated from Salalah for anti-piracy this year + Under the MBD concept, the Navy
now maintains a ship at every choke point in the IOR at any point of time + the navy
has deployed 73 ships till date on anti-piracy patrols + P-81 has electro-optical and
infra-red sensors to penetrate thickly forested areas
 Under the “Neighbourhood First” policy, the Navy undertakes Joint Exclusive
Economic Zone surveillance with the Maldives, the Seychelles and Mauritius and
coordinated patrols with Bangladesh, Myanmar, Thailand and Indonesia.
 Divorce bill = BREXIT + for Britain’s exit from European Union

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 Government borrowing has steadily increased over the last five year (the centre’s
share has remained fairly constant during this period, borrowings by state
governments have risen with each passing fiscal year + state fiscal deficit levels
increased until FY17 and declined subsequently in the next two years (however their
gross borrowings increased continuously over this period. Fiscal deficit of the centre
has seen a steady fall)
 Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of (Hybrid &) Electric Vehicles in India
scheme/FAME Scheme = part of its NEMMP + The scheme has four focus areas:
technology development, pilot project, charging infrastructure and demand creation
+ Ministry of heavy Industries
 2nd Phase of FAME-India = implemented over the period of 3 years from 2019-20
to 2021-22 + main objective of the scheme is to encourage faster adoption of electric
& hybrid vehicle by the way of market creation and indigenization + Electrification of
the public & shared transport + Local manufacturing: Special incentives will
be given for local manufacturing of critical components for electric vehicles,
especially the lithium ion batteries + Establishment of charging infrastructure +
stresses upon theindigenization of the entire EV value chain + Offering incentives to
Original Equipment Manufacturers (OEMs) to invest in setting up a charging network
+ Under FAME -2 scheme, withdrawal of subsidies on EVs using lead acid batteries
& low-speed electric two-wheelers + FAME-Phase 2 has been introduced to achieve
the target of more than 30% electric vehicles by 2030( a more
realistic goal in comparison to the earlier target of 100% EVs by 2030)
 Difference between Non banking financial company(NBFC) and Bank = Provides
Banking services to People without holding a Bank license + An NBFC cannot accept
Demand Deposits + An NBFC is not a part of the payment and settlement system +
An NBFC cannot issue Cheques drawn on itself + Deposit insurance facility of the
Deposit Insurance and Credit Guarantee Corporation is not available for
NBFC depositors, unlike banks + An NBFC is not required to maintain Reserve
Ratios (CRR, SLR etc.) + An NBFC cannot indulge Primarily in
Agricultural, Industrial Activity, Sale-Purchase, Construction of Immovable
Property
 Xylotrechus quadripes/Coffee White stem borer = is a species of beetle +
considered a pest and known for its habit of boring through the stems of coffee
plants in plantations
 Medicine Nobel Prize =  for research into how the body’s natural defences can fight
cancer + discovery led to treatments targeting proteins
(Example: Protien named Ligand PD-1) made by some immune system cells that act
as a “brake” on the body’s natural defences killing cancer cells(READ ABOUT T-
CELLS FROM STATIC)
 Great Grey Owl = is a very large owl, documented as the world's largest species
of owl by length + Least Concern + It is distributed across the Northern Hemisphere,
and it is the only species in the genus Strix found in both Eastern and Western
Hemispheres
 Crime and Criminal Tracking Network & Systems(CCTNS) = Mission Mode
Project under the National e-Governance Plan of Government of India + aims at
creating a comprehensive and integrated system for enhancing the efficiency and
effectiveness of policing through adopting of principle of e-Governance and
creation of a nationwide networking infrastructure for evolution of IT-enabled-state-

10
 of-the-art tracking system around ‘Investigation of crime and detection of criminals +
project was unveiled in 2015 to connect all police stations in the state
 Section 376E of Indian Penal Code (IPC) = under which life imprisonment or death
penalty can be awarded to repeat offenders in rape cases + The provision was
introduced by the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013, on the basis of
recommendations of the Justice J.S. Verma Committee, which was formed to consider
changes in law to deal more sternly with offenders in sexual offence cases + (Shakti
mills case, 2013 = Bombay high court upholds law + case challenging the
constitutional validity of Section 376E (punishment for repeat offenders) of the IPC
under which they were sentenced to death by a sessions court)
 National security adviser (NSA) = no clear term of appointment + the NSA’s post
was first created in 1998 + first NSA to get cabinet status in the table of precedence +
in his previous stint as an NSA he had the stature of a minister of state (MOS)
 H1-B visa = by USA + the ones that allow tech companies to bring in highly-skilled
workers from abroad + according to some estimates about 75% of all H1-B visa
holders are Indians.
 Global Entrepreneurship Summit 2019 = 9th edition + Hague, Netherlands +
number of entrepreneurs from across the world, including 27 from India + being
hosted by the governments of the United States of America and the Kingdom of the
Netherlands, and is the first edition of the event to be held in the European Union +
GSE 2017 event in India focussed on the issue of ‘Women First, Prosperity for All’. It
was the first edition of the GES to take place in South Asia, and more than 50% of the
delegates at the event were women.
 Bird flu = H5N1
 Operation Blizzard = Coordinated by Interpol + to counter Illegal reptile trade
 Central Drugs Standard Control Organization (CDSCO) = It is the national
regulatory body for Indian pharmaceuticals & medical devices under Ministry of
Health & Family Welfare + responsible for approval of New Drugs, Conduct of
Clinical Trials, laying down the standards for Drugs
 Swachh Survekshan 2020 league = part of annual Swachh Survekshan or sanitation
survey of cities and towns + by Union housing and urban affairs ministry + a
quarterly assessment of cleanliness
 South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) = to promote welfare
of the peoples of South Asia & to improve their quality of life; to accelerate
economicgrowth, social progress and cultural development in the region + 8
members(Nepal + Bhutan + India + Maldives + Afghanistan + Bangladesh +
Pakistan + Sri lanka) + China has a status of an observer state
 BIMSTEC = Bay of Bengal Initiative for Multi-Sectoral Technical and Economic
Cooperation (BIMSTEC) + involving a group of countries in South Asia and South
East Asia(Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Myanmar, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Thailand) +
A BIMSTEC free trade agreement is under negotiation  + Leadership is
rotated in alphabetical order of country names + The permanent
secretariat is in Dhaka(The organisation did not even have a secretariat until 2014) +
founded in 1997 with BIST(Bangla,India,srilanka,thailand) + Bhutan and Nepal
joined in 2004 + meeting took place after 4 years inNepal(Kathmand)(4th Summit) +
leaders of BIMSTEC nations have held summits just four times in 22 years + One of

11
 BIMSTEC’s two founding principles is: “Cooperation within BIMSTEC will
constitute an addition to and not be a substitute for bilateral, regional or multilateral
cooperation involving the Member States.” + Its official literature describes it as a
bridge between South and South East Asia” and a “platform for intra-regional
cooperation between SAARC and ASEAN [Association of Southeast Asian Nations]
members.
 Motor Vehicle Agreement = between  India, Myanmar and Thailand (under
negotiations) + This agreement is necessary to utilise physical road infrastructure
on IMT Trilateral Highway
 Motar Vehicle Agreement = between BBIN (BBIN ?????????)
 South Asia Satellite/GSAT-9 = a Geostationary Communication satellite
launched byISRO to provide various communication applications over South Asian
countries. Some other applications include: Tele-medicine, Disaster Management,
Banking, e-governanceetc + (India will set up five ground stations and more than 500
terminals in five neighboring countries – Bhutan, Nepal, Maldives, Bangladesh and
Sri Lanka +infrastructure is being created as an extension of the South Asia Satellite
launched in 2017)
 Most FavouredNation(MFN) status = While the term suggests special preference for
the country given MFN status, it actually means it would be treated equally as all
others + According to the World Trade Organisation(WTO) rules, countries
cannot normally discriminate between their trading partners. If one
country is granted a trade concession such as, for example, lower import duties,
then all WTO members must be extended the same concessions. This principle is
known as the Most Favoured Nation treatment +India recently revoked MFN status to
Pakistan bestowed in 1996
 Regional comprehensive economic partnership (RCEP) = Proposed FTA
between the 10-member ASEAN bloc and its six FTA partners— India, China, Japan,
South Korea, Australia and New Zealand + Once concluded,RCEP will create the
largest regional trading bloc, making up 25% of GDP, 30% ofglobal trade, and 26%
of foreign direct investment (FDI) flows + RCEP ‘guiding principles and objectives
state that the “negotiations on trade in goods, trade in services,investment and other
areas will be conducted in parallel to ensure a comprehensive and balanced outcome”
 National Tutors programme = may be launched soon + Ministry of Human resource
and Development(MHRD) + under this thousands of professionals from various fields
and retired university teachers, who are willing to join “voluntarily”, will be engaged
to provide complementary teaching to higher education students
 2 + 2 Dialogue = already had with Australia, Japan and USA  +BETWEEN External
affairs ministry and defence ministry(I.e, two ministries and two countries)
 Section 29A of the Representation of the People Act, 1951 = governs the election
symbols reservation, allocation order and registration of Political parties in India +
The Election Symbols (Reservation and Allotment) Order, 1968 empowers the EC to
recognise political parties and allot symbols
 Golfinho-Atum gas field = Mozambique
 Organisation of Islamic Cooperation(OIC) =  1969 founded + 57 member states
including Iran and Pakistan + Hq at Jeddah, Saudi Arabia + Objective is to Raise the
collective voice of the Muslim world + OIC has permanent delegations to

12
 United Nations and the European Union + In this organisation, India is a
blocked country, though it has about 12% of the world’s Muslim population. India has
been blocked by Pakistan from joining the OIC over Kashmir issue + OIC regard
parts of Kashmir as “occupied byIndia” + It is second largest inter-governmental
organization after UN
 Khartoum = City in Sudan
 Bharat bill payment system (BBPS) = BBPS is an integrated bill payment system
in India offering interoperable and accessible bill payment service to customers +
owned by NPCI
 2019 Global Economic prospects (GEP) report = World bank + semi-annual
 Remdesivir dose = experimental drug + an experimental Ebola cure may also protect
against Nipah virus + antiviral drug + Remdesivir, is also being tested against the
Ebola virus in the outbreak now under way in the Democratic Republic of Congo +
The only current treatment for Nipah virus infection is a monoclonal antibody that is
still experimental; (it was tested during an outbreak in India last year) + Ebola and
Nipah belong to different viral families, but Remdesivir — made by Gilead Sciences
and also known as GS-5734 — appears effective against both + the drug has also
shown some effectiveness against two other pandemic threats: Lassa fever and MERS
coronavirus. It is also effective against Respiratory Syncytial virus, which infects
children all over the world + Nipah virus, which causes encephalitis and pneumonia,
is lethal in about 70% of cases.
 SDG gender index = India ranked 95th out of a total 129 countries + first-ever +
which measures strides made in achieving gender commitments against
internationally set targets + index has been developed by Equal Measures 2030 +
index finds that no country has fully achieved the promise of gender equality and that
the global average score of 65.7 out of 100 is “poor” + A score of 100 indicates the
achievement of gender equality in relation to the underlying indicators. (A score of 50
would indicate that a country is about halfway to meeting its goal). India’s score of
56.2 means that it is among 43 countries in the ‘very poor’ category + India scores the
highest in health (79.9), followed by hunger (76.2) and energy ( 71.8). Among the
SDGs, on which the country performs poorly are patnerships (18.3), industry,
infrastructure and innovation (38.1) and climate (43.4).
 Committee on Investment and Growth = to be Chaired by PM + consists of Home
Minister, Finance Minister, Minister for Road Transport and Highways and MSME
and Railways Minister + This committee will be a focussed group to take measures to
bring investments and spur growth in the critical sectors including infrastructure,
manufacturing and agriculture, as the economy is passing through a highly volatile
period
 Committee on Employment and Skill Development = to be chaired by PM + 10-
member Cabinet + committee will prepare a road map to bring the economy back on
growth trajectory
 Olive ridley turtles = VULNERABLE + performs Arribada( synchronized, large-
scale nesting) + India’s odisha and Andhra pradesh coast are famous for their
nesting(Gahirmatha beach + rushikulya river mouth etc are some famous sites)
+ Bahuda river mouth(Odisha) is another site  + (A proposal has been made to
establish a permanent research centre near the Rushikulya rookery on the Odisha

13
 coast to study the mass nesting of Olive Ridleys and the environmental factors related
to it + Forest Department is planning to have it in the Khallikote forest range, near
the Rushikulya rookery + The centre would be involved in a detailed study of the
habits and the habitat of the turtles and the coastal flora and fauna. It would have a
museum for the general public where skeletons and eggs of different marine turtles
would be displayed. It would also include models and interactive displays)
 Sabarmati river = Sabarmati is counted among the most polluted rivers in the
country, under the Central Pollution Control Board’s (CPCB) National Water Quality
Programme + Sabarmati is amongst the most polluted rivers in the country, and
among the top three polluted rivers in Gujarat, the other two being Amlakhadi and
Khadi.
 Swine flu =  Influenza A H1N1 +H1N1 influenza (or swine flu) is a highly contagious
acute respiratory disease of pigs caused by type A influenza virus that regularly
causes outbreaks of influenza in pigs. Swine flu viruses do not normally infect
humans. However, sporadic human infections with swine flu have occurred +
Children younger than five years old and adults who are 65 years and above, patients
with chronic pulmonary condition (including asthma), , neurological, neuromuscular
or metabolic disorders (including diabetes), obese adults and pregnant women are in
the high risk group
 Doctors 4 doctors (D4D) = IMA has launched + aimed at preventing burn out,
addressing mental health challenges and reducing incidents of suicide among
residents and clinicians.
 (Mechuka advanced landing ground (ALG) = Arunachal Pradesh) + (Pari-Adi
Mountain = Arunachal Pradesh)
 INS Rajali = located at Arakkonam in Tamil Nadu
 In the solar panel manufacturing sector, the Indian government allows 100% foreign
investment as equity and it qualifies for automatic approval = The government is also
encouraging foreign investors to set up renewable energy-based power generation
projects on build-own-operate basis.
 Everyday giving in India report 2019 = Sattva Foundation undertook a first-of-its-
kind study on the everyday giving ecosystem in India, with the support of the Bill &
Melinda Gates Foundation and Rohini Nilekani Philanthropies
 World Giving Index of 2018 = by the U.K.-based Charities Aid Foundation + India
tops the list of countries in the number of people donating money (although it ranks
only 89th for participation rates when calculated as a proportion of the population).
 Safeguard duty = Tariff imposed to restrict imports of a product temporarily (take
“safeguard” actions) if its domestic industry is injured or threatened with injury
caused by a surge in imports
 Electronic Voting Machine (EVM) = An EVM consists of a "control unit" and a
"balloting unit". The control unit is with the Election Commission-appointed polling
officer; the balloting unit is in the voting compartment into where voter casts her
vote in secret + It runs on a single alkaline battery fitted in the control unit, and can
even be used in areas that have no electricity + manufactured by Electronics
Corporation of India Limited (ECIL) and Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) + EVMs
were 1st used in 1982 Kerala Assembly elections (by-election) + RP Act 1951 was
amended in 1988 to allow usage of EVMs + In 1999, they were used for the 1st

14
 time in the entire state for Goa Legislative Assembly elections + In 2004, EVMs were
used for the 1st time in Lok Sabha elections.
 Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT) = independent verification system
designed to allow voters to verify that their votes were cast correctly + a paper slip is
generated bearing name and symbol of the candidate along with recording of vote in
CU + The printed slip is visible (for 7 seconds) in a viewing window attached to
BU in voting compartment + Subramaniam Swamy vs ECI (2014)(SC said VVPAT is
necessary for transparency in voting and must be implemented by ECI. In General
Elections 2019, VVPATs will be used in all the constituencies)
 Pradhan Mantri Jan Aarogya Abhiyan (PMJAA) =alsoknown as Ayushmann bhar
at- National Health Protection Mission + world’s largest healthcare scheme, aims to
provide a cover of ₹5 lakh per family annually, benefiting more than 10 crore poor
families + for secondary and tertiary care hospitalization + People in SECC
will get automatically enrolled in this scheme + only individuals with a valid Aadhar
card will be eligible + National health agency will be the implementing agency
 Garuda Exercise = Indian and French air force + week-long mega air exercise
 Shanghai Cooperation Organisation(SCO) = Eurasian political, economic, and
security organization + formed in 2001 + headquartered in Beijing + SCO comprises
eight-member states, India, Kazakhstan, China, Kyrgyz Republic, Pakistan, Russian,
Tajikistan and Uzbekistan(NO TURKMENISTAN) + RATS + 4 observer states and 6
dialogue partners + (Bishkek Declaration = 19th SCO summit)
 RATS(Regional anti terrorist structure) = SCO + permanent organ + It is
headquartered in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. The Head of RATS is elected to three-year
term. Each member state also sends permanent representative to RATS
 Shanghai cooperation organization (SCO) summit = 19 th + Bishkek Kyrgyzstan
 Nal se Jal scheme = aims to provide piped drinking water to every rural home by
2024, in response to studies showing that 84% of rural homes have no access to piped
water, with more than 70% of the country’s water contaminated.
 Indian navy Environment conservation (INECR) = formulated by Indian Navy
towards achieving the goal of Clean and Green Navy + Under the INECR, numerous
policies aimed at reduction of energy consumption and environment sustenance have
been formulated and disseminated to all ships, as well as shore establishments.
 Yellow Sea = surrounded by China, North Korea and South Korea(Mark on Map)
 Monetary Policy Committee(MPC) = Targeting inflation is to be the core objective
+ committee was mooted by the Urjit Patel committee + MPC will be a 6 member
committee:3 by Govt and 3 by RBI(Governor don’t have a veto power but enjoy a
casting vote in case of a tie) + MPC will meet four times in 1 year
+ CRR(Cash reserve ratio) is not in ambit of MPC
 The change of stance to accommodative from neutral by MPC = means there is a
possibility of further monetary easing in the months ahead + (Calibrated Tightening
= this is a type of rate cycle in which only two options
possible i.e,MPC will increase interest rates or keep them constant (but won’t
decrease))
 Short wave transmissions = short wave is the only effective way to reach any part of
the world where FM and other modes don’t work(Read more about shortwave from
static)

15
 Chaukhandi stupa = Sarnath, Uttar Prdesh + has been declared of national
importance by the Archaeological survey of India + originally, stupa is said to be built
by emperor Ashoka + Octogonal tower at the top is a mughal monument built in 1588
to commemorate humayun’s visit
 Competition Commission of India = established under Competition Act,2002 + to
eliminate practices having adverse effect on competition + to promote &
sustaincompetition(protect the interests of consumers and ensure freedom of trade in
the markets of India)
 Sambar deer = Vulnerable + State animal of Odisha + Native range : Indian
subcontinent, southern China, and Southeast Asia
 As per DPP-2016(Defence procurement procedure), there are two sub-categories of
‘Make’ Procedure:
• Make-I (Government Funded): It will involve Government funding of 90%,
released in a phased manner.
• Make-II (Industry Funded): Under this, private industry funds the research for the
product on its own and develops a prototype. There will be no government funding
 New START (Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty) = a nuclear arms reduction treaty
between the United States and the Russia + Formal name :Measures for the Further
Reduction and Limitation of Strategic Offensive Arms + signed in 2010, entered into
force on 2011,It is expected to last at least until 2021
 Sinai Peninsula = Egypt
 Domestic Systemically Important Banks (D-SIBs) = Designation Given by RBI to
banks which are too big to fall + SBI, ICICI and HDFC are in this Category
 The plants discovered this year includes close wild relatives of many potential
horticulture, agriculture, medicinal and ornamental plants. The discoveries include
plants belonging to groups Amomum (wild cardamom), Cycads, Rubus
(raspberry), Syzygium (wild jamun), Terminalia, Balsams, Zingibers and also
seven trees and 10 orchids + 224 new species of plants and 372 animal species
discovered in India last year
 Kapu = refers to a social grouping of agriculturists found primarily in
the southernIndian state of Andhra Pradesh
 Marginal Cost of Funds Based Lending Rate (MCLR) System = (MCLR) refers to
theminimum interest rate of a bank below which it cannot lend, except in some cases
allowed by the RBI. + it is an internal benchmark or reference rate for the bank. +
Baserate calculation is based on cost of funds, minimum rate of return, i.e. margin or
profit, operating expenses and cost of maintaining cash reserve ratio
while the MCLR is basedon marginal cost of funds, tenor premium,
operating expenses and cost of maintaining cash reserve ratio. + Calculation of
marginal cost under MCLR: Marginal cost is chargedon the basis of
following factors interest rate for various types of deposits, borrowings and return on
net worth. Therefore, MCLR is largely determined by marginal cost of funds
and especially by deposit rates and repo rates
 Territorial Army = Territorial Army (TA) is a second line of defence after the
Regular Indian Army + it is not a profession, occupation or a source of employment
+ organized under the Territorial act,1948

16
 Thulabharam = a Hindu ritual in which a person is weighed against a commodity
such as flowers, grains, fruits and similar articles in temples and the equal value or
quantity is offered as donation
 National testing agency = National Testing Agency (NTA) has been established as a
premier, specialist, autonomous and self-sustained testing organization to conduct
entrance examinations for admission/fellowship in higher educational institutions + It
will be society registered under Indian Societies Registration Act, 1860
 Inter-Creditor Agreement (ICA) = A group of banks, including public sector,
privatesector and foreign banks, signed an inter-creditor agreement +  It is part of
the “Sashakt” plan approved by the government to address the problem of
resolving bad loans. + framed under the aegis of the Indian Banks’
Association (IBA) and follows the recommendations of the Sunil Mehta
Committee on stressed asset resolution + ICA is an agreement among banks that
have dues from a borrower in stress.The pact mandates the lead bank to formulate a
resolution plan that will be executed in a time bound manner + Applicable to all
corporate loan above 50 crore + if 2/3rd of the lenders in terms of
aggregate exposure approve then the pact is binding on all lenders +In joint lenders’
forum there was to arrive at a consensus among creditors which is not so in ICA +
holdout problem, where the objections of a few lenders prevent a settlement
between themajority lenders, will be solved through the inter-creditor agreement
 SEBI and the Ministry of Corporate Affairs (MCA) signed a memorandum of
understanding (MoU) to facilitate seamless sharing of data and information for
carrying out scrutiny, inspection, investigation and prosecution + This assumes
significance as the MCA has the database of all registered firms while SEBI only
regulates listed entities that may have unlisted subsidiaries, with the MCA having
access to all the data of such unlisted entities.
 Sexually transmitted infections (STIs) = chlamydia, gonorrhoea, trichomoniasis and
syphilis(These are some examples)
 DS-160 and DS-260 forms = DS-260 is an immigrant visa application and is filed
after the immigrant visa petition while The DS-160 is a non-immigrant visa
application
 5G = next generation cellular technology that will provide faster and more reliable
communication with ultralow latency + with 5G, the peak network data speeds are
expected to be in the range of 2-20 Gigabits per second (Gbps). This is in contrast to
4G link speeds in averaging 6-7 Megabits per second (Mbps) in India as compared to
25 Mbps in advanced countries + But once 5G becomes commercial, users will be
required to change their current devices in favour of 5G-enabled ones + ultra low
latency offered by 5G makes the technology desirable for such use cases. Latency is
the amount of time data takes to travel between its source and destination + even after
the entry of 5G into the Indian networks, the earlier generation mobile technologies
(2G, 3G and 4G) will continue to remain in use and that it may take 10 or more years
to phase them out + South Korea and the U.S. became the first countries to
commercially launch 5G services + Ericsson has also installed a 5G test bed at IIT
Delhi for developing applications in the broadband and low latency areas + Besides
the spectrum, 5G will require a fundamental change to the core architecture of the
communication system. Simply upgrading the existing Long Term Evolution core will

17
 not be able to support the various requirements of all 5G use cases + Digital
Communications Commission (DCC), the apex decision making body at the telecom
department oversee 5G trials
 Abhay Karandikar panel = on offering experimental/trial spectrum for 5G
 Amundsen sea[Locate on MAP]
 New paper-based test kit for malaria detection = IIT Guwahati + One of the
aptamers selectively captures the antigen (P. falciparum glutamate dehydrogenase -
PfGDH) from the P. falciparum strains, while the other captures another antigen
(Plasmodium lactate dehydrogenase - PLDH) that is common to all the Plasmodium
species.
 IIT Mandi indicate that nanostructures made of gold embedded with silver show zero
resistance to the flow of electric current through them + this happens at the relatively
high temperatures, between 240 K and 275 K, that is, approximately between -33
degrees Celsius and 2 degrees Celsius.
 Scientists have created high-resolution maps of points around the globe where
groundwater meets the oceans + the first such analysis of its kind that may help
protect both drinking water and the seas + nearly one-half of fresh submarine
groundwater discharge flows into the ocean near the tropics + regions near active fault
lines send greater volumes of groundwater into the ocean than regions that are
tectonically stable + dry, arid regions have very little groundwater discharge, opening
the limited groundwater supplies in those parts of the world to saltwater intrusion.
 Mula-Mutha river cleaning project = Pune, Maharashtra
 Sariska tiger reserve = Rajasthan
 Chandrayaan -2 Mission = the country first moon lander and rover mission + 2019
+ ISRO + The first Indian moon landing spacecraft of the Chandrayaan-2 mission will
be known as ‘Vikram’ + It is ISRO’s first inter-planetary mission to land rover on any
celestial body + soft landing is the most challenging part of the mission + robotic
rover, named Pragyan + The moon’s constantly sunny side gets light for 14 Earth
days or one lunar day. The lander and the rover are expected to work for just that
duration + 3500 kg + will be launched on the heavy-lift GSLV-MK III rocket + The
tests related to the lander were conducted at the Challakere multi-agency campus
where ISRO, DRDO, BARC and the IISc facilities are located
 Challekere = place in karnataka + artificial lunar site created here to test the sensors
of Chandrayaan-2
 Economic Advisory Council(EAC-PM) =  independent body which provides advice
on economic issues to the government, specifically to the Prime Minister + non-
constitutional and non-statutory, non-permanent and independent body + It advise can
be either suo-motu or on reference from prime minister or anyone else
 Life ball = Life Ball in Vienna is the biggest charity event in Europe supporting
people with HIV or AIDS. The event is organized by the nonprofit organization AIDS
LIFE
 Ranbir Penal Code(RPC) = J&K + related to sexual harrasment + Ranbir Penal
Code (RPC), to insert a section to provide for the offence of “sextortion.” + J&K has
become the first State in the country to bring a law to prevent people in power from
exploiting subordinates sexually

18
 Banks will now have a review period of 30 days after a borrower defaults to decide on
the resolution strategy, as compared to the one-day norm earlier + They will also have
the freedom to decide whether or not to drag a defaulter to the insolvency court if
resolution does not take place within 180 days of default.(Banks had no such option
earlier)
 India became the world's first to successfully perform a telerobotic coronary
intervention(robotic method of performing heart surgery. With the help of the internet
and a robotic tower, a surgeon is able to treat patients from a distance)
 National strategy for Artificial Intelligence = NITI Aayog
 International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) = setup in 1957 + Headquarter  at
Vienna+ Objective is to promote the peaceful use of nuclear energy, and to inhibit its
use for anymilitary purpose, including nuclear weapons + Though independent of
UN it reports to both the United Nations General Assembly and Security Council
+ Nobel Peace Prize in  2005 + UN atomic watchdog
 National Data Warehouse = MOSPI + leveraging big data analytical tools to further
improve the quality of macro-economic aggregates
 Acute encephalitis syndrome (AES) and Hypoglycaemic encephalopathy = AES in
short, is a basket term used for referring to hospital, children with clinical
neurological manifestations which include mental confusion, disorientation,
convulsion, delirium or coma + (Meningitis caused by virus or bacteria + encephalitis
(mostly Japanese encephalitis) caused by virus + encephalopathy, cerebral malaria,
and scrub typhus caused by bacteria are collectively called acute encephalitis
syndrome) + While microbes cause all the other conditions, encephalopathy is
biochemical in origin, and hence very different from the rest. There are different types
of encephalopathy + In the present case of Bihar, the encephalopathy is associated
with hypoglycaemia and hence called hypoglycaemic encephalopathy + It is an
observed fact that malnourished children between two to 10 years fall ill and die due
to hypoglycaemic encephalopathy. It is not known why older children or adults do not
suffer the same way + (A virus does not discriminate by age, and children younger
than two years too are affected by Japanese encephalitis)
 How encephalitis different from hypoglycaemic encephalopathy = Fever on the
first day is one of the symptoms of encephalitis before the brain dysfunction begins.
While fever is seen in children in the case of hypoglycaemic encephalopathy, fever is
always after the onset of brain dysfunction (actually due to the brain dysfunction).
And not all children exhibit fever. Some children have no fever, while others may
have mild or very high fever + The blood sugar level is usually normal in children
with encephalitis but is low in children with hypoglycaemic encephalopathy + In the
case of encephalitis, fever (due to virus infection) for a day or two is followed by the
onset of symptoms caused by the brain getting affected. However, in hypoglycaemic
encephalopathy, children go to bed without any illness but manifest symptoms such as
vomiting, convulsion and semi-consciousness early next morning (between 4 a.m. to 7
a.m.)At that time, the blood sugar level is low, hence the name hypoglycaemic
encephalopathy + The most important difference between the two is the presence of
white blood cells in the cerebrospinal fluid. In encephalitis, there are more white
blood cells per unit volume of cerebrospinal fluid, which is a reflection of

19
 inflammation in the brain. In contrast, no increase in white blood cells is seen in
hypoglycaemic encephalopathy as there is no inflammation in the brain.

 Acute Encephalitis Syndrome (AES) = is locally known as Chamki bukhar (brain

fever)
 Hypoglycaemia = causes abnormally low-levels of sugar in the blood or a Deticiency
of sodium or potassium in the blood
 Hypoglycin A = naturally present in litchi fruit + methylenecyclopropylglycine
MCPG
 Hypoglycaemia (when the level of glucose in the blood falls below normal) is usually
due to an overdose of insulin in children with diabetes + It is easily corrected with
oral sugar or intravenous glucose + The easily available 5% glucose solution suffices.
Hypoglycaemic encephalopathy, however, is different from simple hypoglycaemia +
Jamaican Vomiting Disease, a form of hypoglycaemic encephalopathy. It is triggered
when unripe ackee fruits are eaten. These fruits contain a substance, methylene
cyclopropyl alanine, which blocks a biochemical process called fatty acid oxidation,
or gluconeogenesis + ackee and litchi belong to one plant family.
 Group of Twenty (G 20) = international forum for the governments and central
bankgovernors from 19 countries and the European Union + first G20 Summit was
held in Berlin in December 1999 and was hosted by the finance ministers of Germany
and Canada + was formed in 1999 to discuss policies relating to financial stability
+ Its agenda was expanded since 2008 including heads of governments / heads of
states as well as finance ministers and foreign ministers + For the first time, India will
host the annual G-20 Summit in 2022 + India is
conducting trilateral meetings independently for the first time simultaneously at the
summit level (Russia-India-China (RIC) meeting or Japan- America –India
(JAI) meeting)

20
 Recent G20 summit = 11th + also known as Osaka summit(Japan) + The G20 Summit
is formally known as the “Summit on Financial Markets and the World Economy”[MORE
WILL BE COVERED IN UPDATED VERSION]
 QUAD = (India + Japan + USA + Australia) + India is not a military alliance partner
while the other three are + initiated in 2007 + Inter-governmental security forum
 Kaleshwaram lift irrigation project = Telangana + Godavari river  
 National crisis management committee = headed by Cabinet secy + to handle
disaster and other emergency situations + Home ministry
 Hypersonic Technology Demonstrator Vehicle (HSTDV) = Defence Research and
Development Organisation (DRDO) + indigenously developed + technology
demonstrator vehicle to prove a number of critical technologies for futuristic missions
from Dr Abdul Kalam Island off the coast of Odisha
 Information Fusion Centre (IFC) = for the Indian Ocean Region (IOR) + 24/7
regional information sharing center + Through this
Centre, information on “white shipping”, or commercial shipping, will be
exchanged with countries in the region to improve maritime
domain awareness in the Indian Ocean +IFC has been established at
the Navy’s Information Management and Analysis Centre (IMAC) in Gurugram
 Pencil Portal = platform for effective enforcement of no child labour + Ministry of
Labour
 Eastern economic forum = international forum held each year in Vladivostok,
Russia, for the purpose of encouraging foreign investment in the Russian Far East
 Arctic: territory of dialogue forum = provides one of the key platforms for
discussing the problems and prospects of the Arctic region at the global level + The
event is held with direct support from the Government of the Russian Federation +
Russia is keen that India joins the Arctic: Territory of Dialogue Forum.
 Comprehensive Convention on International Terrorism (CCIT) =
proposed by India in1996 + NOT adopted yet by UN + CCIT defined terrorism and
enhanced “normative processes for the prosecution and extradition of terrorists.”
 International North–South Transport Corridor (INSTC) = is the ship, rail, and
road route for moving freight between India, Russia, Iran, Europe and Central Asia
+ Initiatedby Russia, India and Iran in 2000 + to improve trade connectivity
 Ashgabat Agreement = multimodal transport agreement that envisages the
creation of an International Transport and Transit Corridor connecting Central Asia
with the PersianGulf + The corridor being multimodal will consist of road, rail and
sea transport + India has acceded to the Ashgabat Agreement + Kazakhstan,
Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan, Iran,India, Pakistan Oman(IIT-UK-PO)
 Consumer confidence survey = by RBI
 Bimal Jalan committee = looking into the size of capital reserves that the RBI
should hold.
 Cyclone Vayu = Saurashtra region + Gujarat + Places such Dwarka, Junagarh,
Naliya, Rajkot and Shore of Veraval, Gujarat are affected
 Cyclone Fani = Odisha
 Herbicide Tolerant (HT) Bt cotton = Hundreds of farmers joined in what they
termed as the ‘civil disobedience’ movement to protest central government’s
indecisiveness in approving the next generation of Genetically Modified (GM) cotton
by sowing the seeds of the illegal HTBt cotton + Sowed illegally by farmers in

21
 Maharashtra + unauthorised GM crop + only GM cotton permitted to be grown in
India are hybrids/varieties that contain ‘cry1Ac’ and ‘cry2Ab’ genes, isolated from
the soil bacterium Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) and coding for proteins toxic to
bollworm insect pests + Ht-Bt Cotton/ BG Cotton – III, involves the addition of
another gene, ‘Cp4-Epsps’ from another soil bacterium, Agrobacterium tumefaciens +
Ht-Bt cotton can tolerate Glyphosate, a herbicide variety, whose action kill only the
weeds (Pink Bollworm), not the crop + In India, Glyphosate is registered for use on
tea and non-crop area
 Nipah Virus = zoonotic disease (disease transmitted to humans from animals) that
causes severe disease in both animals and humans +  first identified in 1999 during
outbreak among pig farmers in Malaysia and Singapore + Fruit bats of the
genusPteropus/Pteropodidae are the natural reservoirs of NiV + may lead to coma +
Encephalitis may present as acute or late onset + currently no Vaccine available to
treat + the virus was found in countries which never saw an outbreak, such as
Thailand, and the only known outbreaks so far have been in Malaysia, Bangladesh
and India + Nipah is situated in malaysia + (Alappuzha coast = Kerala) + (Kovalam
beach = Kerala)
 Buddhist circuit = Gaya, Patna and Varanasi are included in the circuit
 Middle east peace process = Israeli–Palestinian peace process
 GM brinjal = Bacillus Thuringiensis Brinjal + Coalition for a GM-Free India
(CGFI) have alleged that Bt brinjal is being cultivated illegally in Haryana + created
by India's seeds company Mahyco in collaboration with American multinational
Monsanto, claims to improve yields and help the agriculture sector
 Strait of Hormuz[Locate on MAP]
 Gulf of Oman = Gulf lies between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula + Besides Iran and
Saudi Arabia, Oman, the UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait and Iraq also share the Gulf
coastline + Strait of Hormuz is a choke-point between the Gulf and the open ocean +
With Iran on its northern coast and the UAE and an Omanian enclave on the south
 Kokuka Courageous = Japan’s vessel being attacked in Gulf of Oman
 Fujairah port = UAE
 Chagangkha Lhakhang (temple) = Bhutan
 Joint comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) = Iran’s nuclear deal +
between (P5+1) and Iran + Iran’s ‘clandestine nuclear weapons programme
 Pradhan Mantri Janaushadhi Pariyojana (PMBJP) = Implemented by Bureau of
pharma PSUs of India (BPPI) + campaign launched by the Department of
Pharmaceuticals to provide quality medicines at affordable prices to the masses +
PMBJP stores have been set up to provide generic drugs, which are available at lesser
prices but are equivalent in quality and efficacy as expensive branded drugs
 Uighurs = Turkish ethnic people + living primarily in china
 Black softshell turtle(nilssonia nigricans) = Extinct in the wild + few that remain are
in the ponds of some temples in Assam(Ugratara temple)
 Hayagriva Madhava temple = Hajo in Assam
 Economic performance index = IMF
 Article 243P(c) of the Constitution defines ‘metropolitan areas’ as those having
“population of ten lakhs [a million] or more, comprised in one or more districts and
consisting of two or more municipalities/panchayats/ other contiguous areas, specified

22
 by the governor through public notification to be a metropolitan area + It recognises
metropolitan areas as multi-municipal and multi-district entities + It mandates the
formation of a Metropolitan Planning Committee (MPC) for preparing draft
development plans, considering common interests between local authorities,
objectives and priorities set by Central and State governments, and investments likely
to be made in the area by various agencies + To ensure the democratic character of the
MPC, it is mandated that at least two-thirds of the members of the committee must be
elected by and from among the elected members of the municipalities and
chairpersons of the panchayats in the metropolitan area, proportionate to the ratio of
their respective populations.
 United Nations Convention to Combat Desertification (UNCCD) = India for the
first time will host the 14th session of the Conference of Parties (COP-14) + At the
previous edition of the COP, India had committed to restore 13 million hectares of
degraded and deforested land by the year 2020, and an additional 8 million hectares
by 2030 + The Bonn Challenge is a global effort to bring 150 million hectares of the
world’s deforested and degraded land under restoration by 2020, and 350 million
hectares by 2030 + The United Nations has three major Conventions: the United
Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), the Convention on
Biological Diversity (CBD) and the United Nations Convention to Combat
Desertification (UNCCD) + Established in 1994, the UNCCD is the only legally
binding international agreement linking environment and development issues to the
land agenda + Global land outlook is published by UNCCD
 Kimberley Process Certification Scheme (KPCS) = to reduce the flow of conflict
diamonds or ‘blood diamonds’ used to finance wars against governments around the
world, mostly in African countries + India is the KP chair for 2019 + Fifty-five
members representating 82 countries + India, supported by the Gem and Jewellery
Export Promotion Council (GJEPC), is hosting this event for the first time + Every
rough diamond is accompanied by a certificate confirming its non-conflict origin, and
export-import procedures in most of the countries are now subject to rigorous control.
 Use of cryptocurrency Bitcoin emits 22 megatonnes of carbon dioxide annually, says
a study + For a Bitcoin transfer to be executed and validated, a mathematical puzzle
must be solved by an arbitrary computer in the global Bitcoin network. The network,
which anyone can join, rewards the puzzle solvers in Bitcoin + The computing
capacity used in this process — known as Bitcoin mining
 Virtual biopsy device = scientist have developed + that can quickly and non-
invasively determine whether a skin tumour is cancerous and needs to be removed
surgically + Using sound vibrations and pulses of near-infrared light + The first-of-
its-kind experimental procedure, called vibrational optical coherence tomography
(VOCT), creates a 3D map of the legion’s width and depth under the skin with a tiny
laser diode.
 Joint Monitoring Programme report by UNICEF and WHO shows India has
increased the percentage of its population with access to a protected drinking water
source less than 30 minutes away, from 79% in 2000 to 93% in 2017 + However, the
percentage of households getting piped water has remained stagnant at 44% over the
17-year period.

23
 National Zoological Park + better known as Delhi zoo + has not had a single giraffe
for the last four years + The zoo authorities have now written to three zoos in
Thailand for the animal through an exchange programme.
 Indian grey wolf = carnivore + it inhabits semi-arid and arid areas + grey wolf
(Canis lupus Pallipes) + It has a wide distribution range that extends from the Indian
subcontinent to Israel + Least Concern
 World Investment Report 2019 = by UNCTAD(United Nations Conference on
Trade and Development)
 World population prospects 2019 report = by UN/UNDESA(United Nations,
Department of Economic and Social Affairs)
 Libra = Facebook’s cryptocurrency + facebook and other partners released a
prototype of libra + libra association debuted with 28 members including Mastercard,
Visa + Facebook is separately building a digital wallet called Calibra + Bitcoin and
Libra are both based on block chain technology, which refers to a form of distributed
ledger — not centralised — of transactions + Libra is an initiative of 28 influential
corporate.
 India VIX = volatility index based on the NIFTY Index Option prices
 Government e-Marketplace (GeM) = An online platform for government
users which leverages technology to enhance transparency, efficiency and
speed in public procurement +It provides the tools of e-bidding, reverse e-auction and
demand aggregation to facilitate the government users, achieve the best value of their
money + It is paperless, cashless and contactless platform giving end to end solution +
Ministry of Commerce & Industry
 A water clinic for elephants = opens in Mathura, UP + India has opened its first
specialised hydrotherapy treatment for elephants suffering from arthritis, joint pain
and foot ailments + near the Wildlife SOS’ Elephant Conservation and Care Centre
(ECCC)
 Mallanna sagar project = Telangana
 Cess = cess is levied on the tax payable and not taxable income + a cess can be levied
on both direct and indirect taxes + cess is levied to meet a specific purpose + its
proceeds cannot be spent on any kind of government expenditure + Recent examples
of cess are: infrastructure cess on motor vehicles, clean environment cess, Krishi
Kalyan cess (for the improvement of agriculture and welfare of farmers), and
education cess. To make the point clear, the proceeds from the education cess cannot
be used for cleaning the environment and vice versa + the proceeds of all taxes and
cesses are credited in the Consolidated Fund of India (CFI) + While the tax proceeds
are shared with the States and Union Territories according to the guidelines by the
Finance Commission, the cess proceeds need not be shared with them + (The
education cess, at 2%, which was first proposed in 2004, was aimed at improving
primary education. In 2007, an additional cess of 1% was introduced to fund
secondary and higher education (SHEC). And recently, in the 2019 Union Budget, a
4% health and education cess was announced which incorporates the previous 3%
education cess as well as an additional 1% to provide for the health of rural families +
dedicated fund for primary education is the ‘Prarambhik Shiksha Kosh’, or PSK,
(created in October 2005, a year after the cess was introduced) while that for higher

24
 and secondary education is the ‘Madhyamik and Uchchtar Shiksha Kosh’ (set up in
August 2017))
 Operation hidden Idol = In 2015, Operation Hidden Idol was launched by USA’s
Homeland Securities Investigation Department to recover and repatriate looted
Artifacts and Antiquities numbering 2600 by Subhash Kapoor worth an estimated
Rs.650 Crores ($100 million)
 India Pride Project = A Voluntary Initiative
of private individuals interested in protecting Indian antiquities, that has
been instrumental in the repatriation of several works of incalculable archaeological
and aesthetic value
 Status of forces Agreement (SOFA) is an agreement between a host country and a
foreign nation stationing military forces in that country WHILE Visiting forces
agreement is an agreement between a country and a foreign nation having
military forces visiting in that country
 Back to the village programme = by Jammu and Kashmir govt + Under the
program, the entire administrative apparatus of the state government is going to visit
all the 4483 Panchayat halqas to get the grassroots level feedback from general public
 Yoga = word yoga was first mentioned in the Rigveda + philosophy science and
Grammer were first provided by Patanjali in his magnum opus, Patanjali yoga sutra.
 Project-75I = Project of Indian Navy + follow-on of the Project 75 Kalvari-class
submarine for the Indian navy + is approved for six advanced submarines(6 diesel-
electric submarines, which will feature advanced Air Independent Propulsion (AIP)
systems) worth ₹40,000 crore through the Strategic Partnership (SP) model of the
Defence Procurement Procedure
 Washi paper = japan + UNESCO Intangible cultural heritage tag
 Operation Bandar = code name of Balakot strike
 Visakhapatnam warship = an under construction warship of the Indian navy at
Mazgaon Dockyard Ltd + It is the first of four stealth guided missile destroyers to be
built under Project 15-B Class of the Indian Navy +Mormugao, Imphal and Porbandar
are the others under construction.
 Rajaji and Corbett Tiger reserves = Uttarakhand
 Indian elephant = Schedule-I animal under the Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972, and
Section 9 of the Act prohibits their capture from the wild. Capturing of wild elephants
is permitted only under very limited circumstances as provided in Section 11 and 12
of the Act + Endangered
 Nilachal hills/Kamagiri Hills = Assam
 Notice to airmen (NOTAM) = is a notice filed with an aviation authority to alert
aircraft pilots of potential hazards along a flight route or at a location that could affect
the safety of the flight
 Curiosity Rover = NASA + Mars + NASA Curiosity’s Sample Analysis at Mars
(SAM) has detected the highest ever levels of methane in the course of its mission on
Mars + reading taken at Gate crater
 Trafficking in Persons (TIP) report, 2019 = U.S. State Department has released +
India was placed (i.e., remained) in Tier 2, which comprises “countries whose
governments do not fully meet the TVPA’s minimum standards but are making
significant efforts to bring themselves into compliance with those standards.”

25
 Unique flood hazard Atlas = Odisha has come out + on the basis of historic flood
inundation captured through satellite imagery from 2001 to 2018 + National Remote
Sensing Centre (NRSC) of the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO),
Hyderabad, conducted the study on flood hazard zonation for Odisha + Vast areas of
the State are inundated every year due to the flooding of major rivers — Mahanadi,
Brahmani, Baitarani, Subarnarekha and Rushikulya. Other rivers, like the
Vamsadhara and the Budhabalanga, also cause flash floods.
 Operation Sankalp = Indian Navy + to re-assure Indian-flagged vessels
operating/transiting through persian gulf and gulf of Oman
 Yak = Vulnerable + it can tolerate temperatures as low as -40 degree Celsius +
associated with the Himalayan tahr and white-bellied musk deer + restricted to higher
Himalayas of Asia, the Tibetan plateau and parts of north Russia
 Nagarhole National park = Karnataka + in the Nilgiris-Eastern Ghats
 Bandipur Tiger Reserve = constitutes an important component of a forest landscape
comprising Nagarahole (Karnataka), Mudumalai and Sathyamangalam (Tamil Nadu)
and Wayanad (Kerala) 
 Normalized difference vegetation index (NDVI) = which is measured remotely
from satellite data. This has been used to estimate the amount of food abundance
available to herbivorous animals, for example, elephants. The NDVI is used, for
instance, in attempts to track the presence of elephants using the vegetation they
consume
 Bangkok Declaration on Combating marine debris = by ASEAN + on fighting
maritime waste — a first of its kind — which promises to “prevent and significantly
reduce marine debris,”
 Arogyapacha(Trichopuszeylanicus) = Scientists decode genome + ‘miracle plant’ +
known for its medicinal properties + endemic to the Agastya hills in the southern
Western Ghats + known for its traditional use by the Kani tribal community to combat
fatigue + Studies have also proven its anti-oxidant, aphrodisiac, anti-microbial, anti-
inflammatory anti-tumour, anti-ulcer, hepatoprotective and anti-diabetic properties.
 Herbicide tolerant Bt (HTBT) or Bt3 cotton = unlicensed + farmers who sow this
variety + Farmers additionally need to use glyphosate, a banned weed killer which the
Bt3 variety tolerates.
 National Anti-Profiteering Authority (NAA) = It has been constituted under
Section 171 of the Central GST Act, 2017 + is the institutional mechanism under GST
law to check the unfair profit-making activities by the trading community + recently
tenure extended by 2 years + Non-Permanent body
 LOOK ISRAEL PALESTINE MAP(ALSO MAP GOLAN HIEGHTS and WEST
BANK(Ramallah is in WB)(ALSO THE COUNTRIES TOUCHING)))
 Golan heights = Israeli seized from Syria in 1967 + bordering countries (Israel, Syria,
Jordan, Lebanon) + area houses the Jordan River’s drainage basin, Lake Tiberias, the
Yarmuk River + Israel's main source of fresh water (Sea of Galilee) is located a few
hundred metres to the east of the shore.
 HSN (Harmonised system of nomenclature) code = an internationally adopted
commodity description and coding system developed by the World Customs
Organization (WCO) + HSN code is used by more than 200 countries as a basis for
their customs tariffs

26
 Krishnapatnam port = Andhra Pradesh + private sector
 Garzweiler lignite coal mine = Germany
 Complaint Management System (CMS) = Launched by RBI + online portal to
facilitate bank customer grievance redressal processes + The CMS portal can be
accessed on RBI’s website and complaints can be lodged against any of the entities
regulated by the central bank.
 Ocean cleanup project = started in pacific ocean + Ocean Cleanup is a non-
profit organisation which is developing advanced technologies to rid the world’s
oceans of plastics + It is directed at cleaning The Great Pacific Garbage Patch (GPGP)
which is a zone between Hawaii and California  
 2017-18 Composite Health Index = Kerala secured the highest score + prepared by
the NITI Aayog + which incorporates 23 indicators + among bigger state, Andhra
Pradesh gained six ranks (biggest jump) and Tamil Nadu dropped six places (biggest
fall) + the Indicators include neonatal mortality, immunisation coverage and case
notification rates
 Antigua and Barbuda[Locate on MAP]
 Campaign zero chance = Australian government + to raise awareness among people
trying to enter the country illegally by boats + Australia has so far turned back 847
people on 35 vessels trying to enter Australia illegally as part of the operation
sovereign borders that has been implemented since 2013
 Impressed Tortoise (Manouriaimpressa) = A tortoise considered beautiful enough
to be named ‘impressed’ has been discovered in Arunachal Pradesh + Yazali area of
the Lower Subansiri district + This is the first record of the tortoise in India, taking
the count to five and the non-marine chelonian count to 29 + Chelonian is an order of
reptile that includes turtles, terrapins and tortoises + “There are only two species of
tortoises under the Manouria genus. India was known to be the home of only the
Asian Forest Tortoise (Manouriaemys) until the discovery of the Impressed Tortoise,+
The Asian Forest Tortoise, the largest in mainland Asia, is found only in the
northeast, as are 20 of the other 28 species of chelonians + “The male Impressed
Tortoise is smaller than the female which is 30 cm in length. This Manouria species is
one-third the size of the Asian Forest Tortoise,”
 Prison statistics India = published by the national crime records bureau (NCRB)
 Industrial Security Annex (ISA) = Negotiations started between India and USA + It
would allow Indian private sector to collaborate with the U.S. defence industry(ISA is
particularly essential as the Indian industry looks for a greater role
in defence manufacturing. It allows sharing of classified information from the U.S.
government and American companies with the Indian private sector, which is so far
limited to the Indian government and the defence public sector undertakings)
 U.K Sinha Committee = committee formed by the reserve bank of India (RBI) +
recommened a RS 5000 Crore distressed asset fund for micro, small and medium
enterprises (MSMEs)
 Rio Grande River = Southwest USA and N. Mexico
 Dongria kondhs = Indigenous + Niyamgiri hills + Odisha
 ‘75 Student Satellites Mission 2022’ = Up to 75 tiny satellites built by students of
Indian universities could fly to the skies between late next year and 2022 in batches +

27
 ITCA, a technology promotion body based in Bengaluru, has roped in around 40
engineering colleges to form a consortium.
 Buddhist relic unearthed in A.P. village = 3rd century A.D. relic + Buddhist relic has
been unearthed on the right bank of the Gundlakamma river,Andhra Pradesh + is
carved with half lotus medallions at the centre and top portions on all the four sides in
the Amaravati school of Art of the Ikshwaku times + pillars carved in the Ikshwaku
style were earlier noticed inside the Siva temple at Manikeswaram
 Jal shakti scheme = to ramp up rainwater harvesting and conservation efforts in 255
water-stressed districts + water is a state issue + campaign will be coordinated by 255
central IAS officers of Joint or Additional Secretary-rank, drawn from ministries +
Jal Shakti Abhiyan would aim to accelerate water harvesting, conservation and
borewell recharge activities already being carried out under the MGNREGA and the
Integrated Watershed Management Programme of the Rural Development Ministry,
along with existing water body restoration and afforestation schemes being
undertaken by the Jal Shakti and Environment Ministries + Progress would be
monitored in real time through mobile applications and an online dashboard at
indiawater.gov.in + the Jal shakti abhiyan is a time-bound, mission-mode water
conservation and irrigation efficiency campaign for water security in rural India.
 Bhore committee = 1943 + to assess health condition in India
 Health index 2019 = released by NITI Aayog + Aayog produced its first first ranking
for 2015-16
 Natural Language Translation Mission = Ministry of Electronics and IT(MEITY) +
identified by the Prime Minister’s Science, Technology and Innovation Advisory
Council (PM-STIAC) + The proposal is part of the 100-day action plan charted out by
MeitY + The national mission on natural language translation aims to make science
and technology accessible to all by facilitating access to teaching and researching
material bilingually — in English and in one’s native Indian language + To achieve
this, the government plans to leverage a combination of machine translation and
human translation.
 Global Financial Stability Report (GFSR) = by IMF + Semi annual report + (while
at India level FSR is prepard by RBI)
 Vesper saurus paranaensis = desert-based carnivorous dinosaur that used claws to
capture small prey 90 million years ago has been unearthed in southern Brazil +
Vespersaurus was a theropod, a group of two-footed, meat-eating dinosaurs that
included the better known Tyrannosaurus and Velociraptor.
 Mekedatu project = across the Cauvery river + Karnataka + CWC
gives nod for feasibility report on Mekedatu project + balancing reservoir cum
drinking water project
 Resilient Kerala programme = Government of India, Government of Kerala and the
world bank have signed a loan agreement of $250 million + programme which
represents the maiden state partnership of the world bank of India, is the first of two
development policy operations to mainstream disaster and climate resilience into
critical infrastructure and services.
 “Data Free Flow with Trust, (DFFT)” = The initiative for free flow of data +
announced by Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe in January + came after the

28
 Reserve Bank of India’s guidelines mandating that the storage of all financial data,
including by multinational companies, must be kept on servers in India.
 JL-3 = Ballistic missile + China has successfully tested its latest submarine launched
ballistic missile
 Dragonfly mission = NASA + will launch in 2026 and land in 2034 + to fly a drone
copter to Saturn’s largest moon titan in search of the building blocks of life + titan is
the only celestial body besides our planet known to have liquid rivers, lakes and seas
on its surface, through these contain like methane and ethane not water
 Kartarpur corridor = 4 km from the border with India + shrine on the banks of the
Ravi river in Pakistan + Gurdwara was ordered by Maharaja of Patiala between 1921-
1929 and is believed to be place where Nanak ji spent about last 18 years of his life
 Muvattupuzha project = Irrigation project + Kerala
 Nirbhaya Fund = fund is created by Ministry of Finance in 2013 with a corpus of Rs
1000 crore + Non-Lapsable + It is being monitored by Empowered Committee of
Officers under Secretary of Women and Child Development Ministry + It is an inter-
ministerial committee which appraises and recommends various projects (schemes)
proposed by different ministries to be funded from Nirbhaya Fund + The Fund is
administered by Department of Economic Affairs of the finance
ministry[REMEMBER DEPARTMENT] + The key schemes under which the States
have been allocated money include Emergency Response Support System, Central
Victim Compensation Fund, Cyber Crime Prevention against Women and
Children, One Stop Scheme, Mahila Police Volunteer, and Universalisation of
Women Helpline Scheme(REMEMBER THE NAMES of these schemes being
funded by Nirbhaya Fund)[ALL SCHEMES TO BE COVERED IN LATER
EDITIONS]
 Fast Radio Burst = In radio astronomy, a fast radio burst (FRB) is a
transient radio pulse of length ranging from a fraction of a millisecond to a few
milliseconds, caused by some high-energy astrophysical process not yet identified.
 Cosmic radio waves = In a first, Australian scientists have determined the precise
location of a powerful one-off burst of cosmic radio waves + A team of researchers made
a high-resolution map showing that the burst originated in the outskirts of a Milky Way-
sized galaxy about 3.6 billion light-years away
 ‘One nation, one ration card’ scheme = will ensure all beneficiaries especially
migrants can access PDS across the nation from any PDS shop of their own choice +
Ration card – Aadhar linkage is must to access the benefits of the scheme + Ministry
of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution + A person will only be eligible for
the subsidies supported by the centre such as those under Nation Food security act,
2013 + A migrant will be allowed to buy maximum of 50% of the family quota
 Mahatma Gandhi IT and Biotechnology Park = a dedicated free trade zone built
with India’s assistance, has been inaugurated in Cote d’Ivoire
 PUNCH mission = NASA + will image the Sun + This is a landmark mission that
will image regions beyond the Sun’s outer corona + PUNCH, which stands for
“Polarimeter to Unify the Corona and Heliosphere,” + The mission is expected to be
launched in 2022 + Indian scientist will be Co-Investor in NASA’s PUNCH mission +
[Other SOLAR MISSIONS like Aditya L-1, Parker solar probe, Solar orbiter etc to be
covered in later editions]

29
Vision-June (No Repetition)
Topics already covered in The Hindu section are NOT repeated

 Legal Information Management & Briefing System (LIMBS) = web-based portal

+ developed by Ministry of Law & Justice + for monitoring and handling of various
court cases of Govt. Departments and Ministries + It will help authorities to take 'data
driven decision making' and to evaluate performance of various stake holders and to
conduct legal audit
 Removal of a judge of high court = Article 217 provides that the judge of high court
may be removed from his office by the President in the manner provided in Article
124 for the removal of a Judge of the Supreme Court + Under Article 124(4) of the
Constitution a Judge of SC can be removed only by the President on ground of
‘proved misbehaviour’ or ‘incapacity’ only after a motion to this effect is passed by
both the Houses of Parliament by special majority + Constitution requires that
misbehavior or incapacity shall be proved by an impartial Tribunal whose
composition is decided under Judges Inquiry Act 1968
 Cabinet committees = extra-constitutional bodies + provided by the Governments of
India Transaction of Business Rules, 1961 + set up by the Prime Minister + They are
of two types—standing and ad hoc. The former are of permanent nature while the
latter are of temporary nature + The Cabinet can review their decisions + They
usually include only Cabinet Ministers. However, the non-cabinet Ministers are not
debarred from their membership + They are mostly headed by the Prime Minister
 Ration card = document issued under an order or authority of the State Government,
as per the Public Distribution System, for the purchase of essential commodities from
fair price shops (FPS) + families and conduct periodical review and checking of
Ration Cards + Proof of identification.
 Integrated Management of Public Distribution System” (IM-PDS) Scheme = new
central sector scheme, implemented under Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food &
Public Distribution + Implementation of nation-wide portability in food grains
distribution + Creation of national level data repository for de-duplication of
beneficiary data (Aadhaar based) + Use of advanced data analytics techniques to bring
about continuous improvements
 ‘ASEAN Outlook on the Indo-Pacific’ = Association of Southeast Asian Nations
(ASEAN) has adopted + An initiative that reinforces the ASEAN-centered regional
architecture which is not aimed at creating new mechanisms or replacing existing
ones; rather, intended to enhance ASEAN’s Community building process and to
strengthen and give new momentum for existing ASEAN-led mechanisms
 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) = monetary value all final economic goods and
services produced in a country during a specific period of time + Domestic territory
means political frontiers of the country including its territorial waters, commercial
vessels operated by country’s residents etc. & also includes country’s embassies &
consulates located abroad.
 Gross Value Added (GVA) = measure of value added in goods and services
produced in economy i.e. (GVA = economic output – input) + GVA is sector specific
while GDP is calculated by summation of GVA of all sectors of economy with taxes
added and subsidies are deducted + Central Statistics Office (CSO) in the Ministry of

30
 Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI) is responsible for the compilation
of National Account Statistics including GDP
 GDP deflator = GDP price deflator is a ratio of price levels in two different years that
accounts for inflation in the prices of goods and services + GDP Deflator = Nominal
GDP at Current Prices (2018) / Real GDP at Constant Prices (Base Year 2011) ×100
 ‘Income distance’ = measures the difference between the per capita GSDP of a state
and the per capita GSDP of the state with the highest per capita income.
 Non-performing asset (NPA) = loan or advance for which the principal or interest
payment remained overdue for a period of 90 days or more + In case of
Agriculture/Farm Loans, the NPA varies for short duration crop (interest not paid for
2 crop seasons) and long duration crops (interest not paid for 1 Crop season)
+Substandard assets: Assets which have remained NPA for a period less than or equal
to 12 months + Doubtful assets: Assets which have remained in the substandard
category for a period of 12 months + Loss assets: It is considered uncollectible
 Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) = international committee
formed in 1974 to develop standards for banking regulation + consists of central
bankers from 27 countries and the European Union + headquartered in the office of
Bank for International Settlements (BIS) in Basel, Switzerland + developed a series of
policy recommendations known as Basel Accords + (According to a recent report by
the Basel Committee on Bank Supervision (BCBS) RBI has fallen short of
implementing Basel III norms)
 Leverage Ratio = introduced by BCBS in 2010 + to indicate the level of debt
incurred by banks + leverage ratio, as defined under Basel-III norms, is Tier-I capital
as a percentage of the bank’s exposures + Recently, leverage ratio has been reduced to
4% for Domestic Systemically Important Banks (DSIBs) and 3.5% for other banks for
moving towards synchronisation with Basel III standards + A cut in leverage ratio
implies that banks can lend more on the same capital base + (Leverage Ratio is also
one of the four indicators under the RBI's prompt corrective action (PCA) framework)
 Bank for international settlement(BIS) = international financial institution owned
by central banks + fosters international monetary and financial cooperation and serves
as a bank for central banks + head office is in Basel, Switzerland.
 Total loss-absorbing capacity = international standard, finalised by the Financial
Stability Board (FSB) + intended to ensure that global systemically important banks
(G-Sibs) have adequate loss absorbing and recapitalisation capacity + G-sib is bank
whose failure would trigger a wider financial crisis and threaten the global economy +
Currently there is no G-sibs in India[G-SIBs is different from D-SIBs]
 “Pillar 3 disclosure” = capital adequacy framework under Basel III norms rests on
three components or three pillars + Pillar 3 disclosures aim at ensuring market
discipline through disclosures in prescribed format, while Pillar1 focuses on capital
adequacy and Pillar 2 looks at the supervisory review process
 Credit rating agencies in India = regulated by SEBI (not exclusively) + All the
credit agencies need to be registered with SEBI in order to operate in India + There
are seven Credit Rating Agencies registered with SEBI, viz. CRISIL, ICRA, CARE,
India Ratings and Research, SMERA, Infomerics and Brickworks + (CRAs follow the
'issuer pays model', under which the entity issuing the financial instrument pays the
agency upfront to rate the underlying securities) + (Rating shopping = It is the

31
 practice of an issuer choosing the rating agency that will either assign the highest
rating or that has the most lax criteria for achieving a desired rating)
 National Investment and Manufacturing Zones (NIMZ) = envisaged as integrated
industrial townships with state of the art infrastructure to promote world-class
manufacturing activities + At least 30% of the total land area proposed for the NIMZ
will be utilized for location of manufacturing units + land for these zones will
preferably be waste infertile land not suitable for cultivation, not in the vicinity of any
ecologically fragile area and with reasonable access to basic resources + (NIMZ will
be declared by the State Government as an industrial township under Article
243Q(1)(c) of the Constitution) + Central government provides external physical
infrastructure linkages to the NIMZs + State Government will constitute a Special
Purpose Vehicle (SPV) to discharge the functions specified in the policy + SPV will
prepare a strategy for the development of the zone and an action-plan for self-
regulation to serve the purpose of the policy + The Department for Promotion of
Industry and Internal Trade (former DIPP) is the nodal agency for NIMZ
 National Investment and Manufacturing Zones vs Special Economic Zone
Difference between NIMZ and SEZ

Origin Under National Under SEZ Act, 2005

Manufacturing
Policy, 2011
Minimum Area 5000 hectare 10-1000 hectare
(depending on sector)
Maximum Area Not specific 5000 hectare
Income tax exemption To small and medium 100% for first 5
enterprises years, 50% for next
five years
Environmental Impact Assessment Provided by state By the project
government developer

 Smart cities mission (SCM) = 2015 + to improve ease of living of citizens and create
cities that are ahead of the curve in decision-making and problem solving + there is no
universal definition of a Smart City + The strategic components of Area-based
development in the Smart Cities Mission are city improvement (retrofitting), city
renewal (redevelopment) and city extension (Greenfield development) plus a Pan-city
initiative in which Smart Solutions are applied covering larger parts of the city +
implementation of the Mission at the City level will be done by a Special Purpose
Vehicle (SPV) created for the purpose.
 Operation sunshine 2 = by armies of India and Myanmar + targeting several militant
groups operating in Manipur, Nagaland and Assam + first phase of “Operation
Sunrise” was conducted in February 2019 along the Indo-Myanmar border
 ‘Terminator technology’ = seen in news for GM Crops + meaning seeds for GM
crops have been genetically modified so that resulting crops do not produce viable
seeds of their own
 Ozone pollution = Ozone is not directly emitted from any source. It is a secondary
pollutant + It is also the third most important greenhouse gas after carbon dioxide and
methane + Good ozone: Found in stratosphere, it protects the Earth's surface from

32
 dangerous ultraviolet light + Bad Ozone: Found in the troposphere (also known as
ground level ozone), it is man-made. The released nitrogen oxide (NOx), carbon
monoxide (CO) and volatile organic compounds (VOC), (NOx, CO, and VOCs are
known as ozone precursors) combine chemically with oxygen to form ozone during
sunny days + (Gothenburg Protocol = It aims to abate Acidification, Eutrophication
and Ground-level Ozone and is part of the Convention on Long-Range Transboundary
Air Pollution)
 Sustainable Livelihoods and Adaptation to Climate Change (SLACC)
Programme = National Institute of Rural Development and Panchayati Raj
(NIRDPR) has launched + training programme + SLACC is funded by the Special
Climate Change Fund, which was set up under the UNFCC for adaptation and
capacity building projects + being implemented in convergence with the Mahila Kisan
Sashaktikaran Pariyojana, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee
Scheme (MGNREGS) and other Centrally-sponsored Schemes + objective of SLACC
is to create a cadre of over 200 certified ‘climate-smart’ Community Resource
Persons (CRPs) including progressive farmers and over 100 young professionals in
villages to secure their livelihood through climate-proof planning and adaptations
 NIRDPR = autonomous organisation supported by the Ministry of Rural
Development[Not Panchyati Raj Ministry] + apex body for undertaking training,
research, and action research and consultancy assignments in the rural development
sector in India.
 Mahila Kisan Sashaktikaran Pariyojana = sub component of the Deendayal
Antodaya Yojana-NRLM (DAY-NRLM) + seeks to improve the present status of
women in Agriculture, and to enhance the opportunities available to empower her
 “CAFÉ(Corporate Average fuel Economy) regulations” = aims at lowering fuel
consumption (or improving fuel efficiency) of vehicles by lowering carbon dioxide
(CO2) emissions + Corporate Average refers to sales-volume weighted average for
every auto manufacturer. The norms are applicable for petrol, diesel, LPG and CNG
passenger vehicles + In India, CAFE regulations come into force into 2017
 El Nino/La Nina = abnormal warming of sea surface temperature (SST) of the
Pacific Ocean off the coast of Peru in South America, while La Nina is the opposite,
an abnormal cooling of SST + While El Nino leads to deficit rainfall, La Nina brings
an above-average monsoon. Madden-Julian Oscillation.
 Indian ocean Dipole (IOD) = also referred to as the Indian Niño + condition when
the SST of the western region of Indian Ocean alternately becomes abnormally colder
and then abnormally hotter than the eastern region + Indian Niño can neutralise or
worsen the impact of El Niño/La Niña depending on which phase it is in + ‘positive’
IOD phase, which means higher-than-usual temperatures in the western Indian Ocean,
brings more rain to India than the ‘neutral’ or ‘negative’ (cooling) phase
 Madden-Julian Oscillation (MJO) = MJO wave is a global band of low-pressure
area moving periodically from West to East and determines the initiation and intensity
of low-pressure areas/depressions/cyclones and also oversees monsoon onsets under
its footprint + It is disturbance of clouds, rainfall, winds, and pressure that traverses
the planet in the tropics (between 30º N and 30ºS) and returns to its initial starting
point in 30 to 60 days, on average + There can be multiple MJO events within a
season, and so the MJO is best described as intra-seasonal tropical climate variability

33
 (i.e. varies on a week-to-week basis) + MJO influences the ENSO cycle. It does not
cause El Nino or La Nina, but can contribute to the speed of development and
intensity of El Nino and La Nina episodes + When MJO is over the Indian Ocean
during the Monsoon season, it generally brings good rainfall over the Indian
subcontinent. On the other hand, when it witnesses a longer cycle and stays over the
Pacific Ocean, MJO brings bad news for the Indian Monsoon
 Healthy states, progressive India = NITI Aayog has released the second edition +
ranks states and Union territories innovatively on their year-on-year incremental
change in health outcomes + developed by NITI Aayog, with technical assistance
from the World Bank, and in consultation with the Ministry of Health and Family
Welfare (MoHFW) + Health Index is a weighted composite Index based on three
domains: Health Outcomes, Governance and Info and Key Inputs and Processes
 Food and Nutrition Security Analysis, India, 2019 = prepared by the Ministry of
Statistics and Programme Implementation(MoSPI) and World Food Programme
(WFP)
 World Food Programme (WFP) = food-assistance branch of the United Nations +
world's largest humanitarian organization addressing hunger and promoting food
security + headquarters is in Rome,Italy + member of the United Nations
Development Group
 POSHAN Abhiyaan (National Nutrition Mission) = To reduce stunting, under-
nutrition, anemia (among young children, women and adolescent girls) and reduce
low birth weight by 2%, 2%, 3% and 2% per annum respectively by 2022 and strive
to achieve reduction in Stunting from 38.4% (NFHS-4) to 25% by 2022 (Mission 25
by 2022) + efforts of Ministry of women and Ministry of health
 “Female work and labour force participation in India” Report= UNDP, in
association with IKEA Foundation has brought out + focus of this report has been to
understand the continuing problem of low female labour force participation in India +
According to World Bank, India’s Female Labour Force Participation Rate (FLFPR),
has fallen to a historic low of 23.3% in 2017-18 + Rural FLFPR is significantly higher
than urban FLFPR
 “Progress of the World’s Women 2019-20: Families in a Changing World”
Report = UN Women released
 Internet Security Threat Report 2017 = by Symantec + India is 3rd most vulnerable
country in terms of risk of cyber threats (e.g. malware, spam & ransomware etc.) due
to inadequate cybersecurity infrastructure
 Program Towards Elimination of Tuberculosis = World Bank and the Government
of India signed a loan agreement of $400 million + program will cover nine States and
it will support the government's National Strategic Plan to end TB in India by 2025 +
It will provide financial incentives to private sector care providers, direct benefit
transfer to patents etc + program will help strengthen implementation of Nikshay—
the government’s web-based TB case monitoring system + (Tuberculosis = by
bacteria + India’s TB burden is the highest in the world)
 Revised National TB Control Programme (RNTCP) = implemented under the
umbrella of National Health Mission
 National Strategic Plan to end TB in India by 2025 = RNTCP released this
framework in 2017 for the control and elimination of TB in India by 2025 + It

34
 provides goals and strategies for the country’s response to the disease during the
period 2017-2025 + targets to eliminate TB five years ahead of the global End TB
targets under Sustainable Development Goals + TB elimination have been integrated
into the four strategic pillars of “Detect – Treat – Prevent – Build” (DTPB)
 Universal Immunization Programme = Vaccination is provided for 12 life
threatening diseases: tuberculosis, diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough), tetanus,
poliomyelitis, measles, Hepatitis B, Diarrhoea, Japanese Encephalitis, rubella,
Rotavirus and Pneumonia (added in May 2017)
 Mission Indradhanush = Immunisation against seven vaccine preventable diseases
namely; Diphtheria, Pertussis, Tetanus, Childhood Tuberculosis, Polio, Hepatitis B
and Measles
 Hidden hunger = leads to various diseases like Night Blindness, Goitre, Anaemia
and various birth defects + deficiency of micronutrients + Food fortification is the
deliberate addition of one or more micronutrients to food so as to correct or prevent a
deficiency and provide a health benefit
 +F Logo = FSSAI introduced + for fortified staple food products
 India’s first proton therapy centre = opened in Chennai + for the treatment of
Cancer + name of the centre is Apollo Proton Cancer Centre (APCC) and is launched
by Apollo Hospitals Group. It is South Asia’s first such centre + India becomes 16th
country in the world[NOT First] to offer the therapy + proton therapy It is a type of
radiation therapy which uses protons rather than x-rays to treat cancer + (Bragg
Curve describes energy loss of ionizing radiation during travel through matter)
 Short waves radio transmission = transmission and reception of information by
means of electromagnetic waves of about 10 to 100 m in length having frequencies of
approximately 3 to 30 megahertz + Radio waves in the shortwave band can be
reflected or refracted by the ionosphere + Such wave propagation is called skywave or
“skip" propagation + refraction by ionosphere makes shortwave useful for very long
distance communication, sometimes even beyond continents + Dearth of revenue
from short wave transmission and dwindling audience with advent of digital mediums
has called for phasing out of SW transmitters.
 Medium wave radio transmission = It covers wavelength of 100 to 1000 metres and
frequency of 0.3 to 3 MHz + There is very little daytime reflection of medium wave
radio signal from the ionosphere resulting in a coverage of about 100 kms only + It is
mostly used for local broadcasting, particularly rural communities
 Archeological Survey of India (ASI) = Ministry of culture + It regulates all
archaeological activities in the country as per the provisions of the Ancient
Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Act, 1958 + It also
regulates Antiquities and Art Treasure Act, 1972 + It was founded in 1861 by
Alexander Cunningham who also became its first Director-General + Under Section 4
of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Act,
1958, ancient monuments or archaeological sites which are of historical,
archaeological or artistic interest and which have been in existence for not less than
100 years may be declared as of national importance + protection and maintenance of
monuments declared as of national importance is taken up by ASI
 Leader of Opposition (LoP) = statutory post + According to the directions Speaker
is not obliged to recognise any member of the largest Opposition party in the Lok

35
 Sabha as LoP in case the party does not have strength equal to 1/10th of the quorum
required for a sitting of the House + LoP enjoys the rank of a Cabinet Minister
 Conference on Interaction and Confidence Building Measures in Asia (CICA)
Summit = 5th was held at Dushanbe, Tajikistan + convened every four years + CICA
is a multi-national forum for enhancing cooperation towards promoting peace,
security and stability in Asia + For becoming a member of CICA, a state must have at
least a part of its territory in Asia + United Nations, has the observer status + India is
a founding member of the CICA.
 Council of Europe = international organization set up to promote democracy, as well
as protect human rights and the rule of law on the continent of Europe + founded in
1949 by the Treaty of London
 Tax Information Exchange Agreement(TIEA) = India has notified a tax
information exchange agreement (TIEA) with the Marshall Islands + It was developed
by the OECD Global Forum Working Group on Effective Exchange of Information +
agreement also provides for representatives of one country to undertake tax
examinations in the other country and will help curb tax evasion and tax avoidance +
TIEAs are not binding instruments
 Financial Benchmark Administrators (FBAs) = RBI recently unveiled the norms +
FBA is an organisation or a legal person which controls the creation and operation of
significant benchmark administration process, whether or not it owns the intellectual
property relating to the benchmark + major FBAs recognized in India are :
(FIMMDA), (FEDAI), Financial Benchmark India Private Ltd (FBIL) + According to
the guidelines FBA should be a company incorporated in India with a minimum net
worth of Rs one crore at all times
 Beekeeping Development Committee = under the Chairmanship of Bibek Debroy
recommended to recognize honeybees as inputs to agriculture and considering
landless beekeepers as farmers + India has four major honey bee species; two
domesticated species Indian or Asian honey bee and European honey bee
(introduced in India in 20th century) and two wild species- rock honey bee and
dwarf honey bee + China ranked first in honey production + beekeeping is
supplemental activity under National Horticulture Mission (NHM)
 Varunastra = DRDO + Indigenously-built + anti-submarine electric torpedo + India
is one of the eight countries to have the capability to design and build such a system
 'Strum Ataka' = anti-tank missile + Russia
 Mount Etna = Italy + active composite volcano
 Mount Sinabung = composite volcano + Karo plateau Indonesia
 Go green Initiative = environment conservation initiative launched by the Indian
Army + includes awareness drive and campaigns and other projects like installation of
a Solar Power Plant.
 Worlds first emission trading system = Gujarat has launched + Under the
programme, the government sets a cap on emissions and allows industries to buy and
sell permits to stay below the cap.
 End of Childhood Index = India ranks 113 of 176 countries + End of Childhood
Index is part of Changing Lives in Our Lifetime - Global Childhood Report, 2019
released by Save the Children, a nonprofitorganisation

36
 Online tool “Aware” = World Health Organization(WHO) has launched a global
campaign + aims at guiding policy-makers and health workers to use antibiotics
safely and more effectively
 Prime Minister’s Scholarship Scheme (PMSS) = under the National Defence Fund
(NDF) + PMSS aims to promote technical and post-graduate education for the
widows and children of the deceased/ex-service personnel of Armed Forces and Para
Military Forces and Railway Protection Force + Now state police officials who were
killed during terror/naxal attacks have also been included + being implemented jointly
by M of railways, M of defence & M of home affairs
 National defence fund (NDF) = set up to take charge of voluntary donations in cash
and kind + established in 1962 + administered by an Executive Committee, with PM
as Chairperson + entirely dependent on voluntary contributions from the public and
does not get any budgetary support
 WIPO Copyright Treaty = special agreement under the Berne Convention (for
protection of literary and artistic works) that deals with the protection of works and
the rights of their authors in the digital environment + Granted Rights(the right of
distribution + the right of rental + a broader right of communication to the public)
+ term of protection must be at least 50 years for any kind of work
 Jhanpith Award = presented annually by the Bharatiya Jnanpith + instituted in 1961
+ awarded to Indian citizens (no posthumous conferral) writing in Indian languages
included in 8th Schedule of the Constitution of India and English (added after 49th
Jnanpith Award) + A language which receives the Award in a particular year is not
eligible for consideration for the next two years + first recipient of the award was the
Malayalam writer G. SankaraKurup
 Kolhapuri chappal = granted GI tag + Maharashtra and Karnataka
 Puerto Williams = Chile + Recently granted a status of city - > Now the world’s
southernmost city + (Earlier Ushuaia, in Argentina was the southernmost city)
 Sheath blight disease = in rice + fungal disease + can cause up to 60 per cent
reduction in rice yield
 Parthenogenesis = a reproductive strategy that involves development of a female
(rarely a male) gamete (sex cell) without fertilisation or development of an embryo
from an unfertilised egg cell + It is an adaptive strategy when sexual reproduction is
not possible due to environmental conditions.
 Air Traffic Flow Management - Central Command Centre (C-ATFM) = opened
in New Delhi + seeks to optimise utilisation of resources like airspace and aircraft at
capacity-constrained Indian airports + India has now become the seventh country to
have a centralised air traffic flow management system
 Fiscal Performance Index = Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has unveiled +
index has been constructed using UNDP's Human Development Index methodology
 Global peace index 2019 = Institute for economics & peace (Australian think tank) +
13th edition
 Social development report 2018 = bi-annual + council for social development (a
research organisation)
 World drug report 2019 = by United Nations office on drugs and crime (UNODC)

37
PIB-June (No Repetition)
Topics already covered in The Hindu and Vision are NOT repeated

 Operation Safed Sagar = code name assigned to the Indian Air Force’s role in acting
jointly with Ground troops during the Kargil war + It was the first large scale use of
Airpower in the Jammu and Kashmir region since the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971 +
(‘Operation VIJAY’ popularly known as the ‘Kargil War’ - > 20th Anniversary)
 Draft Copyright Amendment Rules, 2019 = by Department for Promotion of
Industry and Internal Trade + copyright regime is governed by the Copyright Act,
1957 and the Copyright Rules,2013. The Copyright Rules,2013 were last amended in
2016 through the Copyright Amendment Rules, 2016
 Bioceanic Railway Integration Corridor Project = MoU signed between India and
Bolivia to exchange information, conduct meetings etc + central Bi-Oceanic railway
corridor is planned to be built across South America
 Janani Suraksha yojana = Ministry of Health + Rs 1000 as cash incentive for
institutional delivery(Along with PMMVY total cash incentive for institutional
become 6000 Rs) + launched in 2005 as part of the National Rural Health Mission
(NRHM) + aim was to improve India’s infant and maternal mortality rates through
institutional deliveries
 Anaemia Mukt Bharat(AMB) = launched in the year 2018 + part of Intensified
National Iron Plus Initiative (NIPI) Program for accelerating the annual rate of decline
of anaemia from one to three percentage points + The target groups for AMB are
Children 6-59 months, 5-9 years, Adolescent Girls & Boys of 10-19 years, Women of
Reproductive Age (15-49 years), pregnant Women and Lactating mothers
 Weekly Iron and Folic Acid Supplementation (WIFS) Programme = being
implemented to meet the challenge of high prevalence and incidence of anaemia
amongst adolescent girls and boys + The intervention under WIFS include supervised
weekly ingestion of Iron Folic Acid (IFA) tablet for 52 weeks in a year
 SAMARTH scheme = Ministry of Textiles + Skill development and capacity
building scheme in textile sector
 Amended Technology Upgradation Fund Scheme (ATUFS) = Ministry of Textiles
+ Central Sector Scheme + Pan India scheme + ATUFS covers Capital Investment
Subsidy (CIS) + under the Scheme subsidy is given to the units/entities through nodal
financial institutions and not through the state govt + Further ATUFS is targeted
towards focused segments like garmenting and made-ups with additional 10% subsidy
+ The segments which have achieved desired level of modernization, i.e. spinning
etc., have been excluded under ATUFS
 Pradhan Mantri Fasal Bima Yojana (PMFBY) = It aims at supporting sustainable
production in agriculture sector by way of: Providing financial support to farmers
suffering crop loss/damage rising out of unforeseen events, Stabilizing the income of
farmers to ensure their continuance in farming, Encouraging farmers to adopt
innovative and modern agricultural practice and Ensuring flow of credit to the
agriculture sector + PMFBY fails to cover sharecropper and tenant farmers +
envisages a uniform premium of only 2% to be paid by farmers for Kharif crops, and
1.5% for Rabi crops + mandatory for farmers who have taken institutional loans from
banks
 National Accreditation Board for Certification Bodies (NABCB) = India’s
national accreditation body + constituent Board of the Quality Council of India, an
autonomous body attached to the Ministry of Commerce and Industry, is responsible

38
 for accreditation of certification/inspection bodies as per applicable international
standards under an international system of equivalence
 Forest landscape restoration (FLR) Project = project will be implemented by
National Afforestation and Eco-Development Board (NAEB) in partnership with the
International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) + In the first phase, the pilot
will be conducted in Haryana, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Nagaland and
Karnataka
 Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) = It refers to tax avoidance strategies that
exploit gaps and mismatches in tax rules to artificially shift profits to low or no tax
locations + OECD, under the authority of the Group of 20 countries launched the
BEPS project, and had issued action plans in 2015 + recently India approved
ratification of a Multilateral convention to implement OECD's project on checking
tax evasion + Multilateral Convention to Implement Tax Treaty Related Measures to
Prevent Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS) was signed in Paris in 2017. It
entered into force in 2018 + Multilateral Convention is an outcome of the OECD/G20
Project to tackle Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (BEPS)
 International Seed Testing Association (ISTA) Congress 2019 = 32nd held in
Hyderabad + Government of Telangana in collaboration with Government of India,
organized + ISTA is an independent organisation supported by the non-profit
cooperation of experienced seed scientists and analysts + founded in 1924 + it
produces internationally agreed rules for seed sampling and testing, accredits
laboratories etc
 Solar PV Manufacturing Scheme = Ministry of New and Renewable
Energy(MNRE) + To create end-to-end solar PV manufacturing capacity in India +
strengthen Make in India campaign + make domestic manufactures competitive with
international manufactures + insulate the domestic solar power industry from the
vicissitudes of international market + scheme will also help to create skilled jobs +
convert India from a net importer country to a net exporter country + (In the solar
panel manufacturing sector, the Indian government allows 100% foreign investment
as equity and it qualifies for automatic approval)
 Foot & Mouth Disease(FMD) = Viral contagious animal disease + affects all
susceptible cloven-footed animals, including domestic and wild bovines
 Brucellosis = Bacterial + infection spread from animals to people, mostly by
unpasteurised dairy products
 B. N. Srikrishna committee = to recommend Data Protection regime + The
recommendation of committee lead to “The Personal Data Protection Bill, 2018”  +
[Please note, there are 2 more committees under him : one on Arbitration Bill and
other on FSLRC ]
 General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) = EUROPEAN UNION + which
mandates that every EU citizen’s data be stored within the EU
 Electronic Negotiable Warehouse Receipt (e-NWR) System = M of consumer
affairs + documents issued by warehouses to depositors against the commodities +
these can be transferred from one person to another(or can be mortgaged in banks) to
avail finance

39
Insights-June (No Repetition)
Topics already covered in The Hindu, Vision or PIB section are NOT repeated

 Van Dhan Yojana = The initiative aims to promote MFPs-centric livelihood

development of tribal gatherers and artisans + scheme will be implemented through
Ministry of Tribal Affairs as Nodal Department at the Central Level and TRIFED as
Nodal Agency at the National Level + The Van Dhan Vikas Kendra would act as
common facility centres for procurement cum value addition to locally available
Minor forest produce. Also, various skill up gradation trainings have been conducted
for the MFP gatherers.
 One stop centres or Sakhi centers= MoW&CD + funded from Nirbhaya Fund +
aims to facilitate access to integrated range of services including medical aid, police
assistance, legal aid and case management, psychosocial counselling and temporary
support services to women affected by violence
 GAMA portal = The Government has launched an online portal called “Grievance
Against Misleading Advertisements” (GAMA) where complaints relating to
misleading advertisements can be lodged + Ministry of Consumer Affairs
 Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana – Urban = launched by the Ministry of Housing and
Urban Poverty Alleviation (MoHUPA) + Mission seeks to address the housing
requirement of urban poor including slum dwellers through following programme
verticals + government is providing an interest subsidy of 6.5% on housing loans
which can be availed by beneficiaries for 15 years from start of loan date
 Electoral bonds = only be issued by notified bank + could only be brought with
cheque or digital payments + given to political party for fixed period of time +
political party using their notified bank account can convert these bonds into money +
all political party are required to notify their bank accounts to EC + bonds will be like
bearer’s cheque which will facilitate donor’s anonymity to promote transparency in
funding and donation received by political parties + short maturity period + bearer
instrument + can be bought for any value and has a life of only 15 days + Bonds will
be available for purchase only for 10 days in designated months
 Sister-city agreement between Kobe(Japan) and Ahmedabad = This agreement
will formalize the relationship between the two cities, both of which are unique in
their own ways. While Kobe is the Creative Design City of Asia, Ahmedabad is
India’s first World Heritage City + After the agreement, a plan will be laid out on
creating more opportunities for cooperation between the two cities on the academic,
cultural as well as business fronts.
 Maharaja Ranjit Singh = He overthrew the warring Misls and established a unified
Sikh empire after he conquered Lahore in 1799 + He was given the title Lion of
Punjab (Sher-e-Punjab) because he stemmed the tide of Afghan invaders in Lahore +
The maharaja was known for his just and secular rule; both Hindus and Muslims were
given powerful positions in his darbar + (A statue of Ranjit Singh, who ruled Punjab
for almost four decades (1801-39), was recently inaugurated in Lahore)
 “TrackChild” and “Khoya-Paya” web portals =by MoWCD + to track the missing
and found children. + The TrackChild Portal is implemented in association with
various stakeholders including Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), Ministry of
Railways, State Governments/UT etc.

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 Centre for Inland and Coastal Maritime Technology (CICMT) = be set up at IIT
Kharagpur + CICMT will be a state-of-the-art centre which will be set up under the
flagship Sagarmala Programme
 Various Ethnic communities across the world = (Thailand = Yao, Hmong, Karen
and Sea Gypsies) + (Syria = Kurds) + (Kuwait = Bedouin tribes) + (Iraq = Bidoon and
Faili Kurds)
 #IBelong Campaign = UNHCR + it aims to end statelessness by 2024 by resolving
existing statelessness, preventing new cases from emerging and better identifying and
protecting stateless populations
 Fall armyworm(Spodopterafrugiperda) = an Invasive Species + native of America +
First detected in Karnataka this year(now has spread to W. Bengal and Gujarat)
+ attacks crops particularly maize
 Agricultural and Processed Food Products Export Development Authority
(APEDA) = statutory + Ministry of Commerce(NOT Agriculture)
 Lunar Evacuation System Assembly, or LESA = is a pyramid-like structure whose
purpose is to rescue an astronaut should he or she suffer an injury on the lunar surface
+ Developed by the European Space Agency (ESA)
 National Freight Index = by logistics start-up "Rivigo"[NOT by Government]
 E-2020 initiative = In May 2015, the World Health Assembly endorsed a new Global
Technical Strategy for Malaria 2016-2030 + A key milestone for 2020 is the
elimination of malaria in at least 10 countries that had the disease in 2015
 Trichophyton rubrum = is a dermatophytic fungus in the phylum Ascomycota. It is
an exclusively clonal, anthropophilic saprotroph that colonizes the upper layers of
dead skin
 ‘Back to Village’ program = by J&K Govt + to reach out to the people at the
grassroots level
 Financial Stability and Development Council (FSDC) = Non statutory + 2010
+ FSDC has replaced the High Level Coordination Committee on Financial Markets
(HLCCFM) + autonomous body dealing with macro prudential and financial
regularities in the entire financial sector of India +  FSDC is headed by the Finance
Minister and comprises the RBI Governor, the SEBI Chairman, and heads of
regulators such as PFRDA, IRDAI and the Chairman of the IBC
 African Union = is a continental union consisting of 55 countries of Africa(with
exception of various territories of European possessions located in Africa) + The post
of AU’s chair rotates annually between the five regions of the continent + Hq at
Addis Ababa, Ethiopia 
 Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) = non profit
organization that was set up in 1998 to oversee the administration of domain names.
 Regional Cooperation Agreement on Combating Piracy and Armed Robbery
against Ships in Asia (ReCAAP) = ReCAAP is the first regional Government-to-
Government agreement to deal with piracy and armed robbery at sea in Asia +
Information Sharing Centre (ISC) has been established at Singapore to collate and
disseminate the information among the contracting parties and the maritime
community + Presently 20 countries are members of ReCAA (including India)

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 Defending In Numbers Report = released by the Asian Forum for Human Rights
and Development (FORUM‐ASIA)
 Anthrax = Anthrax is a disease caused by Bacillus anthracis, a germ that lives in soil
+ It affects animals such as cattle, sheep, and goats more often than people + Anthrax
does not spread directly from one infected animal or person to another; it is spread by
spores + Anthrax can be contracted in laboratory accidents or by handling infected
animals or their wool or hides
 Solanum plastisexum = Australia’s new sex-changing tomato
 Data Localization = is the act of storing data on any device that is physically present
within the borders of a specific country where the data was generated +
Recommendations by the RBI, the committee of experts led by Justice BN Srikrishna,
the draft ecommerce policy and the draft report of the cloud policy panel show signs
of data localisation
 World Food India 2019 = The government initiated a biennial event– World Food
India to promote food processing sector at global level + The first such event was
conducted in 2017
 Dead zones = Unoxygenated “dead zones” appear in waterways wherever algae are
overfed by runoff from human activities such as urbanization and agriculture – a
phenomenon called eutrophication + It blooms every summer, when warming waters
accelerate the metabolisms of microorganisms, and it is expected to get even worse as
the climate continues to change
 Windrush Scheme = UK + Windrush Scheme enables Commonwealth citizens, their
children, and some other long term residents of the UK to obtain documentation
confirming their status free of charge.
 Spectrum-Roentgen-Gamma (SRG) = Russian/German high-energy astrophysics
space observatory planned to launch in June 2019
 J&K President’s rule = If it is not possible to revoke Governor's rule within six
months of imposition, the President's Rule under Article 356 of the Indian
Constitution is imposed + In J&K, governor’s rule is mentioned under Article 370
section 92 – ‘ Provisions in case of failure of constitutional machinery in the State
 Paddy Frog: named "Aishani" = Researchers have discovered a new species of
‘Paddy Frog’ from Northeast India, primarily in Assam + frog belongs to genus
Micryletta, (a small genus of microhylid frog
 Abujh Marias = PVTG community in Chhattisgarh - > they are entitled to the
habitat rights under FRA + PVTGs are more vulnerable among the tribal groups. In
1975, the Government of India initiated to identify the most vulnerable tribal groups
as a separate category called PVTGs + Total of 75 PVTGs out of 705 Scheduled
Tribes, spread over 18 states and one Union Territory (A&N Islands) in the country
(2011 census)
 El Salvador recognises forests as living entities = El Salvador has lost about 85 per
cent of its native forests since the 1960s
 Traffic Index 2018 = published by TomTom, an Amsterdam-based company
 “Go Tribe Campaign” = to create awareness and promote tribal arts and crafts +
Ministry of Tribal Affairs launched + campaign is organised by Tribal Cooperative
Marketing Development Federation of India (TRIFED)

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